This is the letter the Sidney Anglers Association is submitting on behalf of our membership. We are asking all our members to submit a letter as well suppling them points to cover, not a form letter. After a special meeting we had this week we are also working on other ways to get the message out.
We need as many letters as possible, so feel free to use any information in this letter, and put them in your words to the minister and everyone else.
08 January 2026
The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister, Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Dear Minister Thompson:
We are writing to strongly oppose the proposed changes to the 1999 Salmon Allocation Policy that threaten to reduce or eliminate access for British Columbia’s coastal anglers in favour of expanded commercial and First Nations fisheries. The Prime Minister directed ministers to focus on the economy; these changes would cost the Canadian economy more than a billion dollars annually. Along with dozens of other angling organizations that represent over 300,000 licensed Pacific Tidal recreational fishers, our 126 members would like to maintain our lifestyle that makes living here a joy.
As Canadians in these challenging times, we are concerned that these changes would devastate a vital part of our coastal economy, culture, heritage, and way of life. Pacific salmon belong to all Canadians—not to special interest groups. DFO has a duty to protect this shared resource for present and future generations.
Salmon as Common Property – A Fundamental Canadian Right
Pacific salmon, including Chinook and Coho, are a common property resource owned collectively by all Canadians and managed by the federal government under the Fisheries Act. The 1999 policy itself explicitly states: “Salmon is a common property resource that is managed by the federal government on behalf of all Canadians, both present and future.”
Canadian citizens have a legal right to fish these species under common law principles that predate modern allocation disputes. Access as a Canadian’s common law right should only be reduced if stocks are threatened—not for political reallocation. Why then would DFO even consider reducing recreational access to transfer harvest opportunities to commercial operations or exclusive First Nations fisheries when current salmon returns exceed expectations? This fundamentally undermines the public’s legal entitlement to sustainable access. Recreational fishers are not interlopers seeking handouts—we are citizens stewarding a shared national treasure.
The True Value of Coastal Fishing – Far Beyond “Recreational”
The term “recreational fishing” is misleading and dismissive. For thousands of families and communities along the BC coast, fishing is not a hobby—it is a way of life deeply embedded in our cultural identity and family heritage. From Sidney to remote Vancouver Island communities, multiple generations have fished together, taught their children ocean stewardship, built small businesses, and maintained unbreakable bonds with the sea. This is BC coastal culture at its core—shared by Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike.
Economically, the marine recreational fishing industry generates over $1 billion annually in BC alone, supporting thousands of jobs in guiding, marine tourism, boat maintenance, retail, accommodations, and family-run operations. Small communities on Vancouver Island depend entirely on public salmon access. Shutting down these opportunities under the guise of “reallocation” could trigger economic collapse in coastal towns already struggling with limited diversification.
Unmatched Conservation Leadership by Recreational Fishers
Recreational fishers demonstrate stewardship unmatched by any other sector. We invest countless volunteer hours maintaining hatcheries, raising funds, restoring streams, planting trees, removing debris, and monitoring stocks through organizations and countless community stewardship groups. We give far more to salmon recovery than we take out.
Further recovery of salmon stocks and habitat restoration will never be accomplished by governments alone. It requires the communities and people who live and work along the BC coast—the very same citizens DFO now proposes to exclude. Recent years have shown salmon returns exceeding expectations, thanks in large part to these grassroots efforts combined with voluntary catch-and-release practices.
Science-Based Management, Not Political Reallocation
DFO must prioritize science-based fisheries management over political expediency. Real conservation addresses:
- Pinniped overabundance (seals and sea lions consuming billions of juvenile salmon annually)
- Habitat degradation from forestry, urbanization, and agriculture
- Climate impacts on marine survival
- Mixed-stock fishery bycatch across all commercial gear types.
None of these threats are addressed by handing public salmon allocations to commercial harvesters or rights-based fisheries. Instead, DFO’s consultation paper reveals First Nations and commercial interests pushing to remove recreational priority for Chinook and Coho and impose fixed percentage caps on public fishing—while presuming continuing priority access to Sockeye, Pink, and Chum.
This contradicts Canada’s 30x30 ocean protection commitments, the new federal “action approach” to industry development, and basic conservation biology. The Southern Resident Killer Whales depend on large Chinook—yet DFO prioritizes harvest over ecosystem protection.
Growing Public Resentment Over Rights Imbalance
Recent Section 35 court decisions (including Cowichan and Ahousaht) have expanded Indigenous title claims over private property and public resources, while BC’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act grants near-veto powers over development and land use. These rulings have created widespread concern, resentment, and anger toward both government and First Nations leadership across British Columbia.
By extending the same political logic to fisheries management—reallocating public salmon access based on ancestry rather than citizenship—DFO risks igniting a much larger backlash.
Canadians will not accept being divided into tiers of entitlement. Fisheries policy must reflect equality, shared stewardship, and one national standard for all citizens.
The integrity of Canadian democracy rests on public trust in institutions. That trust erodes when decisions prioritize lineage over science, politics over fairness, or reconciliation over genuine conservation. History shows nations fracture when governments create second-class citizens.
Clear Demands for DFO
We urge you to direct Fisheries and Oceans Canada to:
- Uphold salmon as common property with sustainable public access rights for all Canadians.
- Reject proposals to reduce recreational access or impose discriminatory harvest caps.
- Maintain recreational priority for Chinook and Coho, and commercial sector priority for Sockeye, Pink and Chum, as established in the 1999 policy.
- Mandate science-based predator control of seals and sea lions.
- Invest in uniform catch monitoring across ALL sectors (not just recreational licenses).
- Recognize recreational fishers as essential conservation partners, not political targets.
Yours sincerely,
Brian Dunic,
President, Sidney Anglers Association
