Evidence of meeting #17 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was capelin.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:25 p.m.
Conservative
Rick Perkins Conservative South Shore—St. Margarets, NS
I appreciate that.
I think I will turn the rest of my time over to Mr. Small, if I have any time left.
4:25 p.m.
Conservative
Clifford Small Conservative Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, NL
Thank you.
I'm just wondering if your new assessment tools are going to change to a lower reference point for capelin, as was done with 3Ps cod in 2019, which showed that the cod was in a critical zone. Are we expecting that with capelin, and is this why that fishery can't be opened right now?
4:25 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Mr. Chair, the reason the fishery is not open right now is that we have a process to go through before we change the date. It's not because we have new information or information to determine a limit reference point. We still are not at a point where we have the information to have a full precautionary approach that would have a limit reference point.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ken McDonald
Thank you, Mr. Small.
We have a couple of minutes left.
Mr. Morrissey, I understand you're going to have a question or two. Go ahead when you're ready, please.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Thank you, Chair.
It appears we've pretty well canvassed much of the information on this subject, but for clarification, there was a reference to the capelin coming up on the shore and spawning and dying, but that fishery is not controlled. If they come up on the shore, is that called a recreational fishery? Can anybody go and scoop them up on the beach?
4:25 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
No.
Sylvain, do you want to speak to that?
4:25 p.m.
Regional Director General, Quebec Region, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Of course, if people go to the beach and take the fish, it's a recreational fishery, but here what we're talking about is a true licence-holder, who has—
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Yes, I realize that, but there was a reference to the fact that they're coming onto the beach and then going to waste or dying, and people can't get them, but if you want to go and scoop them up and bring them home, as is the tradition in Newfoundland, you can do that, regardless of the date. Am I correct?
4:25 p.m.
Regional Director General, Quebec Region, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Yes.
Adam, do you have any idea?
4:25 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
They would have to be dead, I believe—
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Who's there to ascertain the mortality...? I'm being a bit facetious on the question. It is a wonderful statement.
I have one question for clarification, Chair.
Was there a request to open the date earlier last year? If there was—because somebody quoted it earlier—what was the context for that request, and what was the reasoning, Mr. Sargent?
4:25 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Sylvain, do you want to talk through the timing last year?
4:25 p.m.
Regional Director General, Quebec Region, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Yes.
Last year, the advisory committee did the stock assessment in March.
We received the request to change the opening date for capelin weir fishing on April 6, I believe. However, the new advisory committee only meets next week. That's the timeline of events.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Okay. I'm not sure you understood the question.
My question was this: Was there a request last year to open the date early—
4:25 p.m.
Regional Director General, Quebec Region, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Yes, there was.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
4:25 p.m.
Regional Director General, Quebec Region, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
As I said, on April 9, we received the request to move up the fishery opening date for the following year, that is, for this year.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Thank you, Chair. I think my time has gone. I'm not sure the question was fully understood, because the answer really didn't line up with my question.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ken McDonald
Thank you, Mr. Morrissey.
That concludes our session. I want to say thank you to the departmental officials for taking part in our meeting today. I especially want to thank Mr. Blanchard, a fellow Newfoundland and Labradorian, for appearing, and for everything he does as the RDG in Newfoundland for our fishers and our fishing communities. I want to say a huge thank you to him from the committee.
We'll allow the invited guests to sign off just for a second before we clue up.
I see it's just committee members now. I just wanted to make a very small statement. When it comes to members' questioning time, you can chew it all up in an opening statement, or chew up the best part of it making a statement, but it takes away from your actual time to get a question in. I try to be as free as I can be with people's time. Especially to Madame Desbiens and Ms. Barron, two and a half minutes, if it involves a large statement before you get to a question, doesn't give you much time to get an answer. It's easier in the five- or six-minute slots, but just keep that in mind, because I hate being the bad guy at the end and saying, sorry, your time is up, because you didn't actually get in time for a more detailed question. I just ask members to please keep that in mind going forward.
I want to say thank you to all the staff who made this possible today, our clerk, our analysts, our interpretation people, and of course to our members of the committee and our fill-in members for today. Thank you for making this meeting another enjoyable one. It's our 17th and everything seems to be going along quite well up to this point. Let's hope it stays that way.
The meeting is adjourned.