The union that represents fish harvesters in Newfoundland and Labrador says it’s time for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to spell out the rules and quota information for the 2020 season.
In a press release today the Fish Food and Allied Workers (FFAW-Unifor) said the northern cod fishery is expected to begin in less than two weeks and harvests don’t have any information on opening dates, gear limits and other crucial information.
The DFO announced the cod management plan on July 8, saying the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for 2020 would be the same as in 2019, at 12,350 metric tonnes.
The decision brought criticism — pro and con — from two fronts.
The FFAW said the TAC should have been set at three percent of the fishable biomass. That would have increased the TAC to 18,000 tonnes and provided a couple of extra thousand pounds of cod for each individual quota.
The union alleged the DFO failed to take into account important data as well as harvester observations when deciding the management plan for 2020.
An oceans advocacy group, however, called for a reduction of the fishing quota, saying the DFO was being ‘irresponsible’ in its plan for 2020.
Oceana Canada said the department went against the advice of DFOs own scientists when it increased the TAC from 9,500 tonnes in 2018 to 12,350 tonnes in 2019, a 30 percent increase.
The group also alleged missing information in the assessment of northern cod, saying the equation misses information on how much fish is taken out of the system in the recreational fishery.
Currently, inshore fishers on the northeast coast of the province are focused on capelin.
The capelin fishery for mobile gear (purse seiners) started earlier this week in most areas from Conception Bay to White Bay. That fishery lasts about a day.
The fixed gear capelin fishery for smaller inshore boats in White Bay, Trinity Bay, and Conception Bay opened this week. That fishery lasts a day or two, depending on how quickly quotas are landed.
The next fishery for most of the smaller inshore fleets will be the cod fishery.
FFAW president Keith Sullivan said harvesters need to be able to plan for that.
“They need to know where they stand going into this year’s cod fishery,” he stated in the press release.
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