Negative Impact of Illegally Setting Nets in Closed Area Results in Significant Penalty for Campbell River Herring Harvester

CAMPBELL RIVER, BC, March 18, 2021 /CNW/ - On September 10, 2020 in Campbell River Provincial Court, the Honourable Judge Crockett found Mr. Josh Duncan, the vessel master of the commercial herring seine vessel Western King, guilty of violations of the Fisheries Act. The Court ordered Mr. Duncan to pay a total fine of $11,607.60.  

It was determined that in the early hours of January 23, 2018, a commercial seine net was illegally set by the vessel inside Deepwater Bay, a rockfish conservation area closed to commercial fishing for herring. Mr. Duncan was also found guilty of non-compliance with legislation and licence conditions around mandatory monitoring.

The Impact Statement presented to the Court covered several areas of significant concern to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The Commercial Herring Food and Bait Fishery occurs on specific dates from November to February annually in the Strait of Georgia, and is conducted with seine gear only.

Commercial seine fishing vessels are designed to capture large quantities by encircling fish schools with a net and is non-selective. Mass catches of mixed and immature fish may have severe population and ecosystem impacts, including that the fish caught may be crucial to the survival of some stocks, and illegal unaccounted for catch may have a negative impact on the stock assessment process, which is designed to provide for sustainable ecosystems and fisheries.

Additional negative social and economic impacts of fishing in closed areas include: the threat to traditional food sources for Indigenous Peoples; diminished livelihoods of those who make a living in the commercial fishing industry, and the loss of significant economic benefits to coastal communities from sports fisheries and tourism.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada has a mandate to protect and conserve marine resources and to prosecute offenders under the Fisheries Act. It ensures and promotes compliance with the Act and other laws and regulations through a combination of land, air, and sea patrols, as well as education and awareness activities.

Quick Facts

• As part of Fisheries and Oceans Canada's work to end illegal activity, the Department asks the public for information on activities of this nature or any contravention of the Fisheries Act and regulations. Anyone with information can call the toll-free violation reporting line at 1-800-465-4336, or email the details to [email protected].
  
  
• Specific areas may be permanently closed to fishing due to navigational concerns, sensitive fish habitat, concerns regards bycatch of non-target stocks or species, or other management considerations.
  
  
• Deepwater Bay is used by multiple species as a year-round fish rearing (nursery) and holding area particularly for salmon, herring and rockfish. The Bay has been closed permanently since the early 1980s.
  
  
• The fine of $11,607.60 breaks down into two sections: a $9,000 fine plus an additional $2,607.60, which represents the landed value of the 16 tonnes of illegally harvested herring.

Additional Resources:

For more on B.C.'s Rockfish Conservation Areas: http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/maps-cartes/rca acs/index-eng.html and on Deepwater Bay https://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/maps-cartes/rca-acs/rca-acs/south-sud/DeepwaterBayChart3539-eng.html

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SOURCE Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Region