Herring Fishery

West Coast Fisherman​

Pacific Herring · 45m ·

Mr. Ellis refers to the “collapse and extirpation or extinction of the majority of the herring populations of the Salish Sea or Strait of Georgia”
Contrary to his statement, herring in the Strait of Georgia are abundant and considered to be in the “healthy zone” for fisheries management. They are at approximately 60% of unfished biomass, well above the internationally recognized target for pelagic and forage fish populations of 35-40% of unfished biomass.
Herring in the Strait of Georgia are not “overfished” as Mr. Ellis claims. The food and bait and special use fisheries take about 5-7% of the herring spawning biomass. Together with the roe herring fisheries, the total harvest rate is about 20%. This rate has been found to be conservative and sustainable through 40 years of experience and by peer reviewed scientific analysis. International scientific studies (Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force) recommend harvest rates of 35-40% as acceptable for these populations.
Contrary to Mr. Ellis views, there are not a large number of individual or distinct herring populations in the Strait of Georgia. Extensive tagging studies from 1936 to 2006 show that Inter-annual fluctuations of herring spawners in different areas of the entire BC coast indicate migratory movements between adjacent major regions. Tagging evidence suggests that approximately 10 to 20 percent of the spawning biomass in any region may move to adjacent regions in subsequent years. Considerably greater inter-area movements occurs between smaller spatial units such as statistical areas, herring sections or locations within each area.
DNA analysis shows that with only a couple of very small isolated inlets , all herring in the Strait of Georgia are part of the same population.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/491...AKUtmYvrEJr14gScFJfUICPzysd7w&__tn__=<<,P-y-R

https://www.facebook.com/groups/491...AKUtmYvrEJr14gScFJfUICPzysd7w&__tn__=<<,P-y-R

Alan Haig-BrownWest Coast Fisherman​

Alan Haig-Brown · Yesterday at 7:22 AM ·
David Ellis herring letter:
February 2, 2022
David Ellis
3872 Point Grey Road
Vancouver BC
V6R 1B4
Mr. Neil Davis
A/Regional Director, Fisheries Management Branch
Pacific Region
Suite 200, 401 Burrard Street - 14th floor, Vancouver,
British Columbia
V6C 3S4
Dear Mr. Davis
Re: DFO Fisheries Management Branch cover up of herring collapse
I wish to respectfully but firmly express my outrage over your handing of the collapse and extirpation or extinction of the majority of the herring populations of the Salish Sea or Strait of Georgia. The only public mention you have made of what should be
considered a National catastrophe is your note in the herring fishing plans that "some First Nations have expressed concern" over the loss of the herring spawning populations over this vast region.
What is going on is in fact a "cover up" of events that were entirely your responsibility, the overfishing of these spawning populations over the last 10 years, in the Food and Bait and Special Use herring fisheries. The Special Use herring fishery is open now, through to next summer, with a "privacy provision" that allows catch locations to remain secret.
May I suggest a more appropriate response to the many unprecedented herring extirpations or extinctions, should be to immediately prepare the public, and the fishing industry, for a 10 year moratorium on all commercal herring fishing in the Salish Sea.
Yours Sincerely,
David Ellis, B.A., M.Sc.
Bookseller to First Nations
Former Fisheries Consultant to the Haida Roe on Kelp fishers and
Former Fisheries Consultant
to the Tl'aamin and Stz'uminus First Nations
And
Former Head
Pacific Fishes
Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
And
Former Commercial Fisher.
Cc: The Honourable Joyce Murray
Cc: 23 Salish Sea First Nations Chiefs
Cc: Salish Sea Environmental and Conservation community
 
"The roe herring seine fishery in the Strait of Georgia, which began March 3, 2022 will close today March 5, 2022 at 14:00 hours.
Validated catch is 818.286 tons of the 832.571 ton quota."
"7,850 tonnes. That is half of the 20% harvest rate that has been allowed in the past, based on DFO assessments for sustainable harvest rates."
www.vancouverisawesome.com

DFO cuts commercial Pacific herring fishery in half

The hits just keep coming for B.C.'s commercial fishing sector
www.vancouverisawesome.com www.vancouverisawesome.com
can someone explain to me exactly how many tons of Herring were harvested this year compared to last year?
 
Here is the summary from last year

ROE HERRING INFORMATION BULLETIN: 34

DATE: March 26, 2021

STRAIT OF GEORGIA


SPAWN FLIGHT
The sixteenth Strait of Georgia spawn flight departed at 09:00 today from Departure Bay in Nanaimo. The flight went as far north as French Creek and south to Ladysmith and covered both sides of Gabriola Island. There was no active spawn observed this morning. The next scheduled flight is tentatively planned for March 29.


TEST PROGRAM
The vessel based test program has concluded for the season. DFO charter test vessel Denman Isle conducted a 27 day test charter from February 20 to March 20. Four industry funded test vessels participated in the test program: Viking Cavalier February 25 to March 9, Nita Maria March 2 to 9, Western Investor March 4 to 8 and Alaska Queen II March 4 to 8. The peak sounding estimate for the Strait of Georgia was approximately 110,000 tons and a total of 25 biological samples were collected.


COMMERCIAL FISHERY SUMMARY
As described in FN0258 the Strait of Georgia roe herring seine fishery closed at 19:00 hours March 13. Validated catch is 2,995.65 tons of the 3,227.68 ton quota.

As described in FN0274 the Strait of Georgia roe herring gillnet fishery closed at 18:00 hours March 17. Validated catch is 8,268.55 tons of the 8,716.19 ton quota. After discussions with the remaining active Pool Captains and the HIAB appointed gillnet representative, the roe herring gillnet season is now closed for the balance of the season.
 
In today’s Times Colonist

Congratulations to the DFO;
the herring are gone
I must congratulate the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for accomplishing what they have been working on for many years. They gave finally wiped out the herring fishery in the Parksville French Creek area.
I have lived on the water in Parksville for 28 years and have watched the herring spawn in front of my house deteriorate year after year. This year has been the death nell of the fishery. Not a sign of a herring this year.
DFO has finally accomplished with the West Coast herring fishery what they accomplished with the East Coast cod fishery some years ago.
Something for them to be proud of, I guess
Al Skiber
Parkville

As a ps to that story, I too have seen the same thing around the Deep Cove and Yellow Point area of Vancouver Island.
Does anyone have any first hand information of the condition of that GREAT run of herring in Active Pass?
 
gone fishin said:
In today’s Times Colonist

Congratulations to the DFO;
the herring are gone
I must congratulate the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for accomplishing what they have been working on for many years. They gave finally wiped out the herring fishery in the Parksville French Creek area.
I have lived on the water in Parksville for 28 years and have watched the herring spawn in front of my house deteriorate year after year. This year has been the death nell of the fishery. Not a sign of a herring this year.
DFO has finally accomplished with the West Coast herring fishery what they accomplished with the East Coast cod fishery some years ago.
Something for them to be proud of, I guess
Al Skiber
Parkville

As a ps to that story, I too have seen the same thing around the Deep Cove and Yellow Point area of Vancouver Island.
Does anyone have any first hand information of the condition of that GREAT run of herring in Active Pass?
Click to expand...
I don't know if I'd call it the GREAT herring run in Active Pass as I was too young to remember the biomass and spawning areas in the pass but what I do remember is that in the 1980's and early 1990's when I was fishing Active Pass regularly we could often cast a herring jig and have it come back full. Those days are long gone although I do see some bait holding in the pass from time to time in recent years. There are many spots on the south coast that have seen similar disappearce of herring spawn / abundance but DFO (until recently) continued to say 'biomass of herring in the SOG is just fine' without looking at the naunces of locally spawning areas and abundance and diversitry of locations and potentially different herring populations (debate continues on this). What's not up for debate is that herring do not hold/spawn in Active pass and hundreds of other areas throughout the SOG like they did just a few decades ago. We needed to take the precautionary principle and now it's gonna be a big uphill climb to restore populations to their historical locations.
 
www.pqbnews.com

Soundings show low herring numbers in Strait of Georgia

DFO says soundings only give information for in-season fishery management
www.pqbnews.com www.pqbnews.com
And we wonder why there are calls to close down the fishery until stocks recover. Let’s hope the soundings aren’t what the reality is but I have to doubt it. I haven’t seen any evidence of herring in our area of Nanoose. We don’t always get the spawn but it happens more often than not.
 
Last edited:
Will look forward to seeing the DFO Summary of the Herring harvest this year.
The word I have is the Gillnetters did ok, but the Seiner Fishers was a disaster with most of the catch too small for market.
 
gone fishin said:
Dismal B.C. herring season sparks renewed calls for moratorium
Dismal B.C. herring season sparks renewed calls for moratorium | CBC News
I know of one long time Herring Roe Seiner who left the grounds without ANY harvestable size herring.
That's right not even ONE....ZERO....NOTA
TIME TO SHUT IT DOWN!!
Click to expand...
Seines caught fairly close to their Quota.. Not sure what happened with your guy? but thats how Pool fisheries work. Gillnets were below their quota, but over the years they have started using larger mesh nets to maximize size and percentage of females. There were some very large areas of spawn.. maybe just no Large females ?

CR Greg
 
CRGreg said:
Seines caught fairly close to their Quota.. Not sure what happened with your guy? but thats how Pool fisheries work. Gillnets were below their quota, but over the years they have started using larger mesh nets to maximize size and percentage of females. There were some very large areas of spawn.. maybe just no Large females ?

CR Greg
Click to expand...
That's how fishing goes...being in the right place and the right time. Much like Chinook....the big ones have been fished out.
I guess I got what my buddy told me backwards. The fact remains....Harvestable Herring Stocks for export Roe was scare this year

“Three days after setting his nets out in the Strait of Georgia between B.C.'s mainland and Vancouver Island, Josh Young headed back home to Pender Harbour. The herring he was expecting to catch were nowhere to be found. “

“Young wasn't alone. When the season opened March 3 for boats equipped with seine nets, they scooped up their fill of the silver foot-long fish in 48 hours. By the time Young and hundreds of others using gillnets arrived on March 5, the fish seemed to have disappeared. “
 

Josh Young​


As I finish my thirtieth year Herring fishing, I can’t help but reflect on all the good times we’ve had with local boys from Pender. Commercial fisherman from the Harbour have endured many challenging times because of support from within and our involvement in various fisheries. Take this fishery away and we are less viable in the future. I’m all for a closure if the science warrants it but not for political or emotional reasons. It’s hard to believe public sentiment of this fishery has gone from sustainable and economically viable to a so called environmental atrocity in just a few years. Herring fishing has brought millions of dollars of economic benefit to my home town. This year has brought substantial herring returns and lengthy spawn deposition, yet the environmental movement has us in their sights and protesting has become much more trendy and profitable than resource extraction. Our fishery is in peril not for scientific reasons or the status of herring stocks but because of anti fishing propaganda that use drones and expensive photography equipment to demonize our livelihood. Local media has yet to report any good press regarding the current stocks of herring in the Strait of Georgia but was right there on Sunday as a handful of protestors staged their opposition to the way we make a living. Global news declined when industry asked to counter the claims made by Pacific Wild.
Pacific Wild won’t stop as long as huge donations keep rolling in and urban dwellers want to stop a way of life they know nothing about. It becomes emotionally draining to endure paid protesters following you as you fish herring only to get that perfect shot that makes us look like ruthless killers of nature. Their simplified attack: the orcas are starving from lack of spring salmon in the strait because we’ve decimated the population is simply false. A simplistic theory that appeals to the politically correct voters in cities. A hypocritical population that develops the banks of the Fraser to Hope and likes to point solely at commercial fisherman for the Fraser salmon crisis. The 75000 ton biomass assessed this year is done by three boats from Ladysmith to the Comox ferry. Lack of research funding means all the other herring populations in the gulf are not quantified. Herring have spawned already in Pender and all throughout the east side of the gulf. This 75000 ton biomass is grossly understated while environmental groups will have you believe the ocean is void of life. Go out on the water during herring season and look at a video sounder rather than Facebook and Instagram for unchecked facts.
The quota our own operation caught this year will bring an gross economic benefit to B.C. of close to a half million dollars. This includes trucking, processing, freezing and shipping our kazunoko to foreign markets. This industry needs your support to overcome this environmental persecution. If you rely on resource extraction for your livelihood: you could be Ian Macallaster’s next victim.
 
wildmanyeah said:

Josh Young​


As I finish my thirtieth year Herring fishing, I can’t help but reflect on all the good times we’ve had with local boys from Pender. Commercial fisherman from the Harbour have endured many challenging times because of support from within and our involvement in various fisheries. Take this fishery away and we are less viable in the future. I’m all for a closure if the science warrants it but not for political or emotional reasons. It’s hard to believe public sentiment of this fishery has gone from sustainable and economically viable to a so called environmental atrocity in just a few years. Herring fishing has brought millions of dollars of economic benefit to my home town. This year has brought substantial herring returns and lengthy spawn deposition, yet the environmental movement has us in their sights and protesting has become much more trendy and profitable than resource extraction. Our fishery is in peril not for scientific reasons or the status of herring stocks but because of anti fishing propaganda that use drones and expensive photography equipment to demonize our livelihood. Local media has yet to report any good press regarding the current stocks of herring in the Strait of Georgia but was right there on Sunday as a handful of protestors staged their opposition to the way we make a living. Global news declined when industry asked to counter the claims made by Pacific Wild.
Pacific Wild won’t stop as long as huge donations keep rolling in and urban dwellers want to stop a way of life they know nothing about. It becomes emotionally draining to endure paid protesters following you as you fish herring only to get that perfect shot that makes us look like ruthless killers of nature. Their simplified attack: the orcas are starving from lack of spring salmon in the strait because we’ve decimated the population is simply false. A simplistic theory that appeals to the politically correct voters in cities. A hypocritical population that develops the banks of the Fraser to Hope and likes to point solely at commercial fisherman for the Fraser salmon crisis. The 75000 ton biomass assessed this year is done by three boats from Ladysmith to the Comox ferry. Lack of research funding means all the other herring populations in the gulf are not quantified. Herring have spawned already in Pender and all throughout the east side of the gulf. This 75000 ton biomass is grossly understated while environmental groups will have you believe the ocean is void of life. Go out on the water during herring season and look at a video sounder rather than Facebook and Instagram for unchecked facts.
The quota our own operation caught this year will bring an gross economic benefit to B.C. of close to a half million dollars. This includes trucking, processing, freezing and shipping our kazunoko to foreign markets. This industry needs your support to overcome this environmental persecution. If you rely on resource extraction for your livelihood: you could be Ian Macallaster’s next victim.
Click to expand...
Interesting information Wildmanyeah
Perhaps you can share the link from where you found that information

Josh Young had this to say about this years harvest

Normally, it takes just days for the quota to be filled. But when the season was finally closed on March 28, the total catch was just over 4,000 tons, a little more than half of what the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) had set for a quota.
"It was a different year," Young said stoically.
The result appears to have surprised the department, too. DFO tries to manage the herring stocks using surveillance from the air, sonar soundings and even divers in the water doing surveys. It then co-ordinates the season opening with when the herring arrive to spawn.
That's because it's the roe that fishermen like Young are after. It's highly prized in the Japanese market.

Today News Post: Breaking News Headline, Latest News Update - TNP

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gone fishin said:
Interesting information Wildmanyeah
Perhaps you can share the link from where you found that information

Josh Young had this to say about this years harvest

Normally, it takes just days for the quota to be filled. But when the season was finally closed on March 28, the total catch was just over 4,000 tons, a little more than half of what the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) had set for a quota.
"It was a different year," Young said stoically.
The result appears to have surprised the department, too. DFO tries to manage the herring stocks using surveillance from the air, sonar soundings and even divers in the water doing surveys. It then co-ordinates the season opening with when the herring arrive to spawn.
That's because it's the roe that fishermen like Young are after. It's highly prized in the Japanese market.

Today News Post: Breaking News Headline, Latest News Update - TNP

Today News Post: Get latest breaking news headlines for local, US events, world news on health, education, sports, entertainment, movie review, celebrity, politics, economy and more
todaynewspost.com todaynewspost.com
Click to expand...

He posted it on his face book two years ago, maybe he had a come to jesus moment.

Probably more likely tho that he had a hour long interview with CBC and they cherry picked a couple of sentences to fit their narrative.
 
wildmanyeah said:
He posted it on his face book two years ago, maybe he had a come to jesus moment.

Probably more likely tho that he had a hour long interview with CBC and they cherry picked a couple of sentences to fit their narrative.
Click to expand...
lol
my point is not what Josh Young thinks.
There is no way of denying it.
This was a dismal, year for the herring harvest.
 
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