Recreational salmon licences will be available to vendors for sale on the west coast and central Newfoundland starting on June 4.
In-river salmon runs are underway in the greatest number in those areas and current angling demand is highest, according to a release from the Department of Fisheries and Land Resources May 31.
The licences are currently being printed and will be distributed as the department receives them.
Licences will be available for purchase in other regions of the province and for non-residents in the coming days, the release states.
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For the 2018 angling season only, all resident salmon licences will be sold for $5 plus HST instead of $23 (plus HST and a $3-vendors’ fee) charged in previous years. Vendors will retain the full amount of the $5-fee, minus remittance of HST. Non-resident licences will continue to cost $80 plus the revised $5-vendor fee.
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has set retention quotas at one fish only per season – pending a mid-season review – with a catch-and-release limit of three fish per day for all rivers in Newfoundland and Labrador in 2018.
The Department of Fisheries and Land Resources has set a catch-and-release limit of 10 salmon per season per licence until DFO’s mid-season review in July.
“Despite the problems created by DFO’s decision to issue a late management plan, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador is committed to ensuring anglers, outfitters and vendors get the most out of this year’s season,” Fisheries and Land Resources Minister Gerry Byrne said.
“We are making every effort to ensure anglers maintain a strong and sustained presence on Newfoundland and Labrador’s rivers this summer to encourage conservation of this vital and valuable resource. My department is working to ensure this resource is managed based on the best science available, and that it upholds anglers’ established values of conservation.”
