Evidence of meeting #40 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 fishery.
A recording is available from Parliament.
2:45 p.m.
Commercial Fisherman, Inverness South Fishermen’s Asssociation
Yes, that's correct. We've seen a decrease in our area. What we're seeing now is similar schools, but it's a pencil mackerel that we're seeing in this area, and we're not having the big mackerel coming through in the abundance we had before.
2:45 p.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
The scientists will say that you need the big fish to really help sustain the stock.
Monsieur Collin and Monsieur Lelièvre, have you noticed the same lack of larger mackerel?
2:50 p.m.
Commercial Fisherman, Regroupement des pêcheurs pélagiques professionnels du Sud de la Gaspésie
Personally, I had the chance to do scientific fishing with the Maurice Lamontagne Institute.
I was fishing once a week, and I was allowed to catch 300 kilos of fish before bringing my catch back to the wharf, where someone would measure it and collect two of each size. Usually, we'd get four or five small mackerel that were 27 centimetres or smaller. I caught some very large ones that were 39 centimetres, not in large quantities, but there were some. With half of my staff, I could get my 300 kilos in 25 minutes, and I didn't have to go far.
2:50 p.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
I have one more question here while I have the time, but what you're saying is that there is a presence of larger fish. You'll say that, yes? Okay.
The scientists are saying that the mackerel stocks have been in decline for decades, and I would have liked to ask this question of them, but perhaps all of you will be able to speculate: Do you think this decline is somehow connected in time with the reduction in the harvest of pinnipeds?
Go ahead, Mr. Sullivan.
2:50 p.m.
President, Fish, Food and Allied Workers - Unifor
Offhand, on the relationship of pinnipeds and mackerel, I'll first say that I don't have clear science on that—mackerel swim relatively fast—but I do know that there are more grey seals in the gulf. There's a massive population of seals off the northeast coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, and obviously they are feeding very heavily. It may certainly have something to do with it, and I think that's an area that's certainly got to be explored more—absolutely.
2:50 p.m.
Liberal
Ken Hardie Liberal Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC
I'll stick with you, Mr. Sullivan.
In a nutshell, there's obviously a clear difference between what you're seeing and what the scientists are telling us. How do we square that? How do we actually pull it together? Just encapsulate that for us.
2:50 p.m.
President, Fish, Food and Allied Workers - Unifor
I absolutely recognize that, and I think everyone should probably review Dr. Carruthers' article that's available online on our union forum in more detail so we can send more information. The idea is to expand the surveys and the science we're doing. I believe that we can look at the biomass with acoustic surveys, but we're certainly willing to sit down with harvesters and explore how we measure this stock accurately, because it has become clearer this year that there is a major disconnect.
Harvesters, like everybody who's on the water, are seeing way more mackerel than we have in the past. I find it disappointing that before the cod moratorium, harvesters were talking about the declines and were dismissed. We don't seem to have learned much. They don't get the respect that they certainly deserve. This one on mackerel has been particularly frustrating for people.
2:50 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ken McDonald
Thank you, Mr. Hardie. That closes out our second panel for today.
I want to say a big thank you, of course, to Monsieur Lelièvre, Monsieur Collin and Mr. MacDougall. As well, Mr. Sullivan, of course, has been here so often lately that he could probably have his own access card to get in the room. Thank you to all four of you for sharing your knowledge with the committee members today. I'm sure it will help in writing a report on this very important issue.
Just for the information of committee members, I'd like to remind them that there won't be any committee meetings next week. It is a constituency week, and if you show up, you're going to be lonely.
When we reconvene on Tuesday, November 15, we will finish up the closure of the mackerel fishing study.
Again, enjoy your constituency week, and we'll see you all back here on the 15th.
As well, try to be on time for the meetings when they start, because it cuts into our time. If we're late starting, we still have a drop-dead time for ending, so we don't get as many questions in as we would like if we don't start the committee meeting on time.
Again, enjoy your week. The meeting is adjourned.