Emergency SFAB Meetings About Proposed SRKW Fishing Closures

These whales must be the stupidest things in the sea, if you eat springs all the time and your family members are starving to death, wouldn’t you go and start eating something else like seals. Specially when the northern s come thru and eat seals. I can’t be leave they want to shut it down from Sooke to the river even for fin fish I wonder how many cod and halibut they eat
 
SpringVelocity said:
I honestly would forget that one and read the one above that Derby just posted.
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While I agree that the study that Derby posted which suggests a 200M zone around whales versus no fishing zones would be a much more positive outcome for us, my point is that we all need to do more than post our opposition on a Sportfishing forum, and voice our opposition both directly at the upcoming meetings and via e-mail.
 
yup. the whale watching industry is very much at fault here. i fish mainly the waterfront and oak bay and can,t beleive some of the crap these jerkoff drivers pull while chasing and cutting off pods of orcas. maybe ban whale watching for a few years and see how the whales react.
 
carpeweekend said:
While I agree that the study that Derby posted which suggests a 200M zone around whales versus no fishing zones would be a much more positive outcome for us, my point is that we all need to do more than post our opposition on a Sportfishing forum, and voice our opposition both directly at the upcoming meetings and via e-mail.
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I agree you guys all need to actually show up this time.
 
Does anyone know if these runs are being closed to commercial fishers as well, or are we the only sector being targeted?
 
I took an opportunity to take my son on a whale watching adventure through a large company based out of victoria last year in September. I couldn't believe what I was overhearing from the tour guides regarding sportfishing when we didn't see killer whales, going on to say there is a plan in place to shut it down. I'll be attending the meeting next week!
 
SpringVelocity said:
Just remember the a-holes you speak of have put up some major funding for net pen project in Sooke that SVIAC started. They aren't our enemies. They are extremely organized. Anyone who attended meeting in Vic a few months ago with the president of the association understand they want the same thing as us. This group also has been doing some data already on their footprint with noise pollution, protocols etc. .
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Yes a-hole is the word i use, last summer one day i was watching a whale watching boat, chase, yes chase a mom and calf, they separated the two, calf surfaces about 10 ft right in front of said vessel and the guy cuts the engine pronto, missed it by a whisker. The mom comes flying up to the boat and her and the calf make out like Ben Johnson going mach 4 away from these idiots. Somehow i don't think the mom and calf were into eating any salmon for a while after that and would have been totally stressed out. Come by the house in the summer and spend a day and watch it for yourself. They cause more distress to the whales than some poor fisher anchoring for halibut or hugging the shoreline fishing for salmon.
 
Why blame and penalize the recreational and commercial fishing sector when they are not the cause of this problem with the starving Orcas? There are an estimated 43K Harbour Seals and thousands of Sea Lions now in the Gulf Of Georgia. It is estimated that the Seals eat about 10 pounds of salmon a day and the Sea Lions 20 pounds of salmon a day. When you do the math, this daily consumption of salmon adds up to an unbelievable number of salmon that are being lost each year to these predators. There used to be a bounty of $5.00 a nose for seals. Maybe that bounty should be reintroduced? One possible solution to this problem would be to reintroduce a massive culling program for the seals and send the seal carcasses to the Arctic to feed the starving Polar Bears.
 
Whale watching vessels are the only vessel that bag these whales all day long. It’s sickening
 
oldtimer said:
Why blame and penalize the recreational and commercial fishing sector when they are not the cause of this problem with the starving Orcas? There are an estimated 43K Harbour Seals and thousands of Sea Lions now in the Gulf Of Georgia. It is estimated that the Seals eat about 10 pounds of salmon a day and the Sea Lions 20 pounds of salmon a day. When you do the math, this daily consumption of salmon adds up to an unbelievable number of salmon that are being lost each year to these predators. There used to be a bounty of $5.00 a nose for seals. Maybe that bounty should be reintroduced? One possible solution to this problem would be to reintroduce a massive culling program for the seals and send the seal carcasses to the Arctic to feed the starving Polar Bears.
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in all fairness, been several studies that the amount of chinook that a seal eats 'on average' is considered around 0.5 to 1lb/day (4% of their daily 12-18lb). Sea lions I think worked out to around 4-5lb/day. Studies have shown though that in the overall population, there are rogue seals/sea lions that do take alot more (ie, the lazy fishermans wharf kind and boat trollers). I know as fisherman, we have always had a problem with these numbers when we see a seal consume our 20lb fish right infront of us! Does he not eat for 40 days now? ha Regardless, when making our argument, we do have to rely on science and the studies from scat samples.

Even at that, it is still significant, I read 100000 harbour seals in bc currently - thats 27 million pounds of fish, at least 22000 sea lions (don't have an up to date on the californias), so that is 32 million pounds. Note with them I think there are times of year they are all down south or something so that would change the numbers..I'd have to re-read. With that, my conservative estimates work out to almost 60 million pounds. That isn't peanuts and I bet those 'rogues' make this much higher, especially accounting for the quantity vs size they take from estuaries.

Funny actually, your idea about the polar bears - I'd be curious if they would take the food without the hunt! That is actually an environmental solution that could appease environmentalists if that was actually feasible! Polar bears need love too!
 
spring time said:
These whales must be the stupidest things in the sea, if you eat springs all the time and your family members are starving to death, wouldn’t you go and start eating something else like seals. Specially when the northern s come thru and eat seals. I can’t be leave they want to shut it down from Sooke to the river even for fin fish I wonder how many cod and halibut they eat
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I don’t know about that. People are polluting the air, water and land that we depend on but refuse to change our ways. We must be pretty far up the stupid tree too.
 
WELL I have to say something as some here are quite uniformed SRKW do not eat seals and seal lions... that is the transients and they are doing quite well.
SRKW eat salmon and Chinook is the one they want.
We have to stop pointing fingers and WORK together Rec fisherman ,guides, whale watchers tackle stores we are a bigger voice then individuals ,there are other players here that want to see us shut down. and its not who you think it is when you attend meeting you will find out.
Really hope you arm chair fisherman come out and see whats going on and listen to what is being said...

Good luck Wolf
 
I read the entire document last night from UBC. It has changed my view of the quiet zones, and I think I see what is going on. The scientists/experts actually agree that closing fisheries isn't going to be effective/hard to manage. It was quite clear as I kept reading. Here is the document again.

http://www.marinemammal.org/wp-content/pdfs/SRKW_Prey_Workshop_Proceedings_2018.pdf.

I also now believe that these closures are just a temporary thing this year to get the data the scientists need to fully understand how noise effects foraging behavior. I believe it possible they are using these closure areas as controls for their experiment. I know in engineering we tend to this when we analyze data. I honestly don't think it is to limit fisheries. I did before until I read this document.

I may be wrong but that is how I read the data, and science here behind this.

Personally it sounds temporary, but we should give feedback to department if what is proposed is not reasonable within the fishery area.

As I stated I think the Pender Island one along the bluffs is a little too extreme. It would be better to open a small area, so at least the rec guys there have an option. The study still could be done if we agreed on a zone. Sooke/Renfrew seems to be able to get that option why not Pender/Sidney/Cow Bay anglers?
 
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That is great, however your adversaries believe in this “ never let the facts get in the way “ principle.
They are not interested that scientists agree that closing the fishery is not effective.

This is now “Political “.


SpringVelocity said:
I read the entire document last night from UBC. It has changed my view of the quiet zones, and I think I see what is going on. The scientists/experts actually agree that closing fisheries isn't going to be effective/hard to manage. It was quite clear as I kept reading. Here is the document again.

http://www.marinemammal.org/wp-content/pdfs/SRKW_Prey_Workshop_Proceedings_2018.pdf.

I also now believe that these closures are just a temporary thing this year to get the data the scientists need to fully understand how noise effects foraging behavior. I believe it possible they are using these closure areas as controls for their experiment. I know in engineering we tend to this when we analyze data. I honestly don't think it is to limit fisheries. I did before until I read this document.

I may be wrong but that is how I read the data, and science here behind this.

Personally it sounds temporary.
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