Justin Trudeau, our new Prime Minister,
sent notes to each of his new Ministers, apprising them of their mandate of
action based on election campaign promises.
You can find all the letters here: http://pm.gc.ca/eng/minister-fisheries-oceans-and-canadian-coast-guard-mandate-letter.
You can find the letter to DFO Minister
Hunter Tootoo here: http://pm.gc.ca/eng/ministerial-mandate-letters.
Part of the
Preamble to Tootoo: As Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast
Guard, your overarching goal will be to protect our three oceans, coasts,
waterways and fisheries and ensure that they remain healthy for future
generations. Canada is uniquely blessed with an abundance of freshwater and
marine and coastal areas that are ecologically diverse and economically
significant. Canada has a responsibility to the world to steward our resources
with care.
Specific
objectives for Hon Tootoo:
·
Work
with the Minister of Environment and Climate Change to increase the proportion
of Canada’s marine and coastal areas that are protected – to five percent by
2017, and ten percent by 2020 – supported by new investments in community
consultation and science.
·
Restore
annual federal funding for freshwater research, and make new investments in
Canada’s Experimental Lakes Area.
·
Restore
funding to support federal ocean science and monitoring programs, to protect
the health of fish stocks, to monitor contaminants and pollution in the oceans,
and to support responsible and sustainable aquaculture industries on Canada’s
coasts.
·
Use
scientific evidence and the precautionary principle, and take into account
climate change, when making decisions affecting fish stocks and ecosystem
management.
·
Work
with the provinces, territories, Indigenous Peoples, and other stakeholders to
better co-manage our three oceans.
·
Support
the Minister of Environment and Climate Change to renew our commitment to
protect the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River Basin, and the Lake Winnipeg
Basin.
·
Act
on recommendations of the Cohen Commission on restoring sockeye salmon stocks
in the Fraser River.
·
Work
with the Minister of Transport to review the previous government’s changes to
the Fisheries and Navigable Waters Protection Acts,
restore lost protections, and incorporate modern safeguards.
·
Work
with the Ministers of Transport, Natural Resources and Environment and Climate
Change to formalize the moratorium on crude oil tanker traffic on British
Columbia’s North Coast, including the Dixon Entrance, Hecate Strait, and Queen
Charlotte Sound.
·
Work
with the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and the Minister of Natural
Resources, to immediately review Canada’s environmental assessment processes
and introduce new, fair processes that will:
o
restore
robust oversight and thorough environmental assessments of areas under federal
jurisdiction, while also working with provinces and territories to avoid
duplication;
o
ensure
that decisions are based on science, facts, and evidence, and serve the public
interest;
o
provide
ways for Canadians to express their views and opportunities for experts to
meaningfully participate; and
o
require
project advocates to choose the best technologies available to reduce
environmental impacts.
·
·
Re-open
the Maritime Rescue Sub-centre in St. John’s, Newfoundland and the Kitsilano
Coast Guard Base in Vancouver.
·
Work
with the Minister of Public Services and Procurement to meet the commitments
that were made for new Coast Guard vessels as part of the National Shipbuilding
and Procurement Strategy.
·
Work
with the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Environment and Climate
Change to improve marine safety.
·
Work
with the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and the Minister of Science
to examine the implications of climate change on Arctic marine ecosystems.
In response, here are a few
comments:
Marine Protected Areas,
this is one where the Sport Fish Advisory Board and the Sport Fishing Institute
should become part of the consultation process. Sport fishers want these areas
open for, at the least, salmon fishing. Also, let’s remember that the SFAB,
after asking DFO for 12 years to set aside some Rockfish Conservation Areas, got
them to take us up on this in year 13. The SFAB set up scores of these all
along the coast line. In great measure, these were needed because of serial
depletion of stocks by the commercial sector.
Since we have done this, we
should be reminding Tootoo that we have already done our part, and been the
leaders in the process. In addition, the South Vancouver Island Anglers
Coalition, has received agreement from DFO to set up chinook netpens in the
greater Victoria Regional District to provide food for killer whales and, by
golly, a few for us, too. Good for Tootoo, too, to do.
Increased freshwater research expenditure, yes to this, and also binging back the Experimental Lakes that
were vital for freshwater research in Canada and the world. In addition, do
remember the research libraries that were axed, particularly the one in
Winnipeg. We want them back.
Saltwater research. This one would
bring back the scientists cut at many facilities by Harper. He intended to let
go 200 scientists. Some of those that were let go, included staff close by at
the Institute of Ocean Sciences at Pat Bay.
On the other hand if this
includes leaving fish farms in the ocean, I think that is a non-starter in BC.
You may recall that Chief Bob Chamberlain sent a letter to Tootoo last week
pointing out that the association of First Nations of BC wants these out of the
water. Also, the Ahousaht First Nation in Clayoquot Sound is taking its demand
for all 22 fish farms to be out of the non-flushing Sound, a UN Bio-sphere, to Norway
in January to join with aboriginal Sami in that nation that also wants fish
farms out of Norwegian waters. See: http://clayoquotaction.org/category/salmon-farming-2/.
Then both move on to Oslo to
present the petition to get them out in both nations. I would guess it’s not
long before the aboriginal groups from Finland, Chile, and New Zealand will become
part of this movement.
Cohen Commission. The 1,200 page tome with
75 recommendations has languished under the previous government and the
Environmental Petition that I worked through with the federal Auditor General’s
office received bland pap as an answer when I asked for a disaggregated budgets
and FTEs – staffing. It is on that site, if you care to look.
The first 22 recommendations
of the Cohen Commission regard fish farms in BC. The most important
recommendation was taking the conflict of interest with respect to fish farm
support out of DFO, and DFO getting on with the Wild Salmon Policy, etc.
Re-enacting Laws, for example, the Fisheries Act, Canadian Environmental
Protection Act, and other legislation, with respect to salmon. The Royal Society
of Canada, several environmental law organizations, scientists, previous DFO
ministers and British Columbians told the previous government that the laws should
not have been changed. See the Huffington Post’s searing article on weakening
the laws: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.ca/2015/05/seventeen-ways-government-is-helping.html.
The post with that link will
take you to the Cohen Commission website. Or, look here: http://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/206/301/pco-bcp/commissions/cohen/cohen_commission/LOCALHOS/EN/INDEX.HTM.
DFO had deleted the Cohen site,
but so many people across Canada complained that they had to bring back an
archival version. It is complete.
The Tanker Ban has already been put in
place, suggesting that the Northern Gateway pipeline is toast. On the other
hand, the new government has said it supports the Kinder Morgan pipeline. We
shall see.
Reopen Kitsilano Coast Guard Station. A
popular move in BC, which should also include bringing back the marine traffic
stations that have been closed. These stations are like airport controllers and
keep tabs on all commercial vessels 24 hours a day. The Estevan site was
closed, with Port Hardy, and Ucluelet on the way out as well. Having done the Inside
Strait at night, I can tell you that there is more commercial traffic in the
dark than all day long, and it is some impressive to be connected 24 hours a
day to traffic control, so you know what is coming at you or catching up.
Climate Change. This should include ‘on
the BC coast’. We have watched chinook not be able to get into rivers, even
pinks on some northern Van Isle rivers this past summer, until late rains occurred.
We need to plan for: dry, hot summers, of high water temp and low oxygen; elimination
of side-streams and their essential coho fry; cold, dry winters putting ice on
side-streams; and monsoons in October/November that bury or scour laid eggs.
All of these need technical solutions. I hate to suggest high system dams as
that just opens the Run of River power debate, but extra flow, such as the
Campbell River system, and the Lake Cowichan weir, would be good to have during
changing weather patterns.
To sum up, I think the big issues facing
salmon are: habitat work, including
the 70,000 culverts out there dissuading fish from crossing to feed or spawn; climate change response; changing DFO, making it a BC-centred
department for salmon (rather than Ottawa), and perhaps by passing its habitat
money to the Pacific Salmon Foundation that leverages every dollar seven times.
Also, as noted, local decision making
with respect to fish stocks, for example, Regional Aquatic Management in the Port
Alberni style, would be good in other areas; getting fish farms out of the ocean and putting them on land rounds
out the top five.
I have estimated BC fish
farm sewage cost at $10.4 Billion, more sewage than the entire human
population, and also that we are subsidizing them, compared with Norway that
auctions saltwater licences for up to $12 Million each, $1.56 Billion because
our licence fee is only $5,000.
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