Early Halibut Opening

[wildmanyeah]

Local sport fishing advisory committees | Pacific Region | Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Local sport fishing advisory committees| Pacific Region | Fisheries and Oceans Canada

www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca

You can find the DFO chair for your area and ask or you could write the minister.

There the public servants not searun

 

[profisher]

You are correct in that paper license data is not captured. However, electronic license data is available and captured. As is the iREC data, which as explained has a newly enhanced survey feature that captures very robust data. 100% of all licence holders are sent an iREC survey. Obviously we don't get a complete number of responses, however the data is significant. I reviewed 13,281 individual data sets today to complete an analysis of the size ranges where the use of rec halibut TAC came from. That allows us to determine data bins for each cm size band and calculate the amount of pounds that represents. From there its possible to forecast across the wider coastal TAC that was fished. So this data is highly useful.

My problem with Irec is that visitors who have no knowledge of our areas, species etc are asked to give accurate information after fishing either on their own or after a guided trip. Much of that collected is garbage in and garbage out. I also agree that access to our fisheries for Americans coming here to fish on there own should be either more restricted or pay much more. Anything to make the point that treating us badly will not go easily for you.

 

[Rain City]

Agreed. And a good suggestion, which is why the SFI worked so hard to get the option of electronic catch recording and licenses implemented. As people adopt the new technology we will get even more robust data, which is super helpful for us to better manage the fishery collaboratively with DFO.

So why are they/we beating around the bush with this? Every time I take a new person out fishing and ask them to print a license, or explain that the digital version is optional, they all laugh. People have been taking advantage of that archaic system for years. The argument that we need to wait for all the non phone using old dogs to die before we can implement this "new" method is hilarious. As if all of these guys aren't sending texts and pictures to their buddies and wives while they're out there already. There is no barrier to using technology anymore. If the poor old-timer can't figure it out by now, then maybe the guy he's paying good money to take him can do it for him. Sorry if I'm offending anyone here . Love you all.

 

[A-a-Ron]

So why are they/we beating around the bush with this? Every time I take a new person out fishing and ask them to print a license, or explain that the digital version is optional, they all laugh. People have been taking advantage of that archaic system for years. The argument that we need to wait for all the non phone using old dogs to die before we can implement this "new" method is hilarious. As if all of these guys aren't sending texts and pictures to their buddies and wives while they're out there already. There is no barrier to using technology anymore. If the poor old-timer can't figure it out by now, then maybe the guy he's paying good money to take him can do it for him. Sorry if I'm offending anyone here . Love you all.

Totally agree. The technology is there to protect the resource. The fact that the annual limit is basically an honour system is wild.

 

[Whole in the Water]

Local sport fishing advisory committees | Pacific Region | Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Local sport fishing advisory committees| Pacific Region | Fisheries and Oceans Canada

www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca

You can find the DFO chair for your area and ask or you could write the minister.

There the public servants not searun

Nope, I and many others would disagree. We can ask our SFAB/SFAC representatives as they represent us/the public in the public fishery. It is part of their representative duties to share info about the work they do and and not pass us off to uninterested and unresponsive bureaucrats and politicians!

 

[ship happens]

Wouldn't need irec anymore. Think it would be a multiple bird stone toss

 

[Confused]

That would look something like a 78-79cm - 1 fish/1 possession fishery at best, more likely we would need to drop the size down to 75 cm (8.2 pounds) to create a buffer against early closure. We haven't yet been advised what the final TAC will be - however expecting it to be 630 - 650K.

If that's what people want, we can investigate how to make something like that happen. They didn't tell us that in the survey however.
Doing a simple calculation, using the 2024 data, 66,221 pieces caught x 9.3 pounds for a 78cm fish = 615K. At 79 cm that is a 9.7 pound fish = 642K.

78 cm option leaves no wiggle room, and place risk of an early season closure again. The North Coast strongly advocates for a delayed start or adopting really small slot sizes to ensure they can fish the fall. I suppose an option to keep everyone happy could be to have an odd year cycle where we have a late start one year, and early start the following year to balance the

Again, between June and August last season we used more TAC than we currently have to work with today - we have minimal options.

Thanks for this, this is actually a lot worse than I thought it would be. I cant see a path where it is anything but 1/1, plus some other restrictions on top of a shortened season. Partly because a shortened season doesn't necessarily guarantee a direct drop in harvest. Going to be very difficult to calculate! Maybe a minimum size?? But that comes with a host of issues as well.
Anyway, i will support whatever you guys come up with. A difficult position, and no one is going to be happy.
There is no envy here as far as being in the position that the volunteers that have to come up with a recomondation find themselves in right now. Hats off to you.

 

[Derby]

Thanks for this Searun! Where can we find the members names for the various SFAB/SFAC specific sub-committees and working groups like the Halibut working group? Thanks for your reply.

I sit on the halibut working group plus many other sub committes am I going to see a burning halibut on my front lawn now from the South?

 

[Whole in the Water]

No, not at all. Folks are just curious as to who is representing us on what committees and what they are working when it is ready to share. Simple request that all.

 

[islandboy]

So why are they/we beating around the bush with this? Every time I take a new person out fishing and ask them to print a license, or explain that the digital version is optional, they all laugh. People have been taking advantage of that archaic system for years. The argument that we need to wait for all the non phone using old dogs to die before we can implement this "new" method is hilarious. As if all of these guys aren't sending texts and pictures to their buddies and wives while they're out there already. There is no barrier to using technology anymore. If the poor old-timer can't figure it out by now, then maybe the guy he's paying good money to take him can do it for him. Sorry if I'm offending anyone here . Love you all.

Having dropped my phone, etc, I would be in favor of a dual system where paper and digital are acceptable. The two need to match to the fishing day, with paper being acceptable when the phone goes overboard during the glory shot.
At least one could keep fishing until the phone is replaced.
Sign me clumsy old timer.

 

[Capt_Ed]

I sit on the halibut working group plus many other sub committes am I going to see a burning halibut on my front lawn now from the South?

DfO loves it when we fight amounst each other within the same sector. Saw it for 40 years in the commercial industry

 

[ziggy]

Well this is a wake up call for sure. TAC is likely never going back up and we’ll be lucky if it doesn’t continue to fall. I don’t see anyway out of this that doesn’t require non Canadian visitors lease TAC from the commercial owners and relieve the pressure, or we buy it. Buying won’t be cheap, assuming even anyone is willing to sell the “gift that keeps on giving”.

 

[Derby]

No, not at all. Folks are just curious as to who is representing us on what committees and what they are working when it is ready to share. Simple request that all.

We had these same conversations about primary & secondary about wh

DfO loves it when we fight amounst each other within the same sector. Saw it for 40 years in the commercial industry

Yup...We are the only group that seems to like to shot there own

 

[Derby]

No, not at all. Folks are just curious as to who is representing us on what committees and what they are working when it is ready to share. Simple request that all.

interesting as I believe you and other led the same charge 4 or 5 years ago and we ate up a pile of our volunteer hrs review all this ?

 

[wolf]

Halibut is for ALL Canadians not just the westcoast fyi

 

[Derby]

Halibut is for ALL Canadians not just the westcoast fyi

Here you go Roy this what a full a full season looks like... enjoy As searun says .... That would look something like a 78-79cm - 1 fish/1 possession fishery at best, more likely we would need to drop the size down to 75 cm (8.2 pounds) to create a buffer against early closure. We haven't yet been advised what the final TAC will be - however expecting it to be 630 - 650K.

 

[wildmanyeah]

Here you go Roy this what a full a full season looks like... enjoy As searun says .... That would look something like a 78-79cm - 1 fish/1 possession fishery at best, more likely we would need to drop the size down to 75 cm (8.2 pounds) to create a buffer against early closure. We haven't yet been advised what the final TAC will be - however expecting it to be 630 - 650K.

I don't think that's correct, that's assuming the same catch rate (Piece Count) as two in possession in 2024 (there was also increase in 2024 going from 1 daily to 2 daily (unders) in mid august to mid september)

Are you saying there would be zero piece count reduction going from 2 to 1. ?

From Searun:
"
That would look something like a 78-79cm - 1 fish/1 possession fishery at best, more likely we would need to drop the size down to 75 cm (8.2 pounds) to create a buffer against early closure. We haven't yet been advised what the final TAC will be - however expecting it to be 630 - 650K.

If that's what people want, we can investigate how to make something like that happen. They didn't tell us that in the survey however.
Doing a simple calculation, using the 2024 data, 66,221 pieces caught x 9.3 pounds for a 78cm fish = 615K. At 79 cm that is a 9.7 pound fish = 642K."

 

[wildmanyeah]

area 1 average size was 8.9 pounds,,,,

if you upped the min size to 10 pounds would you wipe out half their tac? or would they just keep bigger fish

how much of that 15k was taken home will 2 in possession?

 

[SG2.0]

area 1 average size was 8.9 pounds,,,,

if you upped the min size to 10 pounds would you wipe out half their tac? or would they just keep bigger fish

This is what I got for a min size...some assumptions in there though.

 

[Stoisy]

Mandatory electronic licensing and reporting would solve the issue of over- or under-reported harvest. Sure, there are issues like losing your phone over the side etc... but, in reality, the overall effect of missing those few instances where someone loses a phone will be well within the error estimates that would account for non-reported and illegal harvest. Access your license from a friend's phone. It's not like you carry a printer if your paper copy blows away... We'd have 75%+ of anglers reporting their catch at time of capture (hopefully more given that's the law), we'd have a far more accurate estimate of catch compared to the iRec surveys, and they would improve the creel-based estimates as well. Overflights could count boats, without the full limit assumptions, you could compare time of flight with the halibut that were reported from that location. You could get time and location-specific counts for both Chinook and Halibut, with the potential to collect size information as well. Would need the SFI to continue to be a partner in that data collection as they would help ensure there is accountability in reporting.

Areas 3 and 4 appear to be over-reported, which could have saved 10s of thousands of TAC. We'd know that with electronic reporting. We should all be doing it and encouraging everyone else to do the same.