Good morning, everyone.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you to discuss science at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans as it pertains to shrimp fishing in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence.
My name is Eda Roussel. I am a fisheries advisor at the Fédération régionale acadienne des pêcheurs professionnels, FRAPP, and responsible for the shrimp file. I have been with the FRAPP for over 30 years. As a representative of Acadian shrimpers, I attend various peer assessments, as well as the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence and estuary shrimp advisory committee.
Before I tackle the main issues related to your invitation, I think it is important to tell you who we are.
The Association des crevettiers acadiens du golfe is an association of mid-shore Acadian captain-owner shrimpers based on the Acadian Peninsula, hence its name. The ACAG is a member of the FRAPP.
Our shrimpers are mid-shore groundfish fishers who decided to diversify by specializing in shrimp fishing. Ships are 65 feet long and over and travel long distances to get to the fishing grounds. The fishers hold individual transferable quotas and are regulated by a number of management measures. The fishing season begins on April 1 and ends on December 31.
A research survey has been conducted since 1990 in the estuary and in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence in August using a Department of Fisheries and Oceans vessel. That ecosystem survey aims to describe the biodiversity of the species in the gulf, as well as the physical and biological oceanographic conditions. What is important to note is that this research survey is a multi-species survey—in other words, it is not focused solely on shrimp. The survey is also mostly carried out randomly, with stations selected at random, and sometimes shrimp fishing grounds are not covered. Biomass indices are calculated using a geostatistical method. This survey helps describe shrimp distribution, estimated abundance—