Strategy for the Northern and Southern Resident Killer Whales
- Thread starter cohochinook
- Start date
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
I think this time a lawyer needs to be secured if this gets rammed through. It's being pushed with little consultation. These closures will effect a great deal of WCVI communities economically.
This one bothers me because people don't seem to understand how serious it is. Once those areas they have defined are gone they may never be opened again. Interesting how all the areas identified are where tanker traffic is.
This will do direct economic harm to the First Nations communities such as Port Renfrew, Sooke, Bamfield, and elsewhere that really on the business the fishing community brings in. Have they been consulted?
This one bothers me because people don't seem to understand how serious it is. Once those areas they have defined are gone they may never be opened again. Interesting how all the areas identified are where tanker traffic is.
This will do direct economic harm to the First Nations communities such as Port Renfrew, Sooke, Bamfield, and elsewhere that really on the business the fishing community brings in. Have they been consulted?
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SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Hard to not panic.I hadn't seen the south island maps until tonight.
The Victoria and Sooke slide really sucks. How much more does south island have to give up? The areas of interest go from Otter Point down to Constance bank.
I also didn't know that Pender Island is again being considered for expansion of sanctuaries. Good god.
The Victoria and Sooke slide really sucks. How much more does south island have to give up? The areas of interest go from Otter Point down to Constance bank.
I also didn't know that Pender Island is again being considered for expansion of sanctuaries. Good god.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Comment on Watershed Watch FB page..... were losing the PR game folks. This is what our public thinks.
Fun fact: fish are 20% of the size they where in the 1800s due to overfishing. Without intervention we’re looking at fish reaching borderline extinction level population within 30 years. Eating wild fish doesn’t put you on any better of moral standing than eating farmed.
Fun fact: fish are 20% of the size they where in the 1800s due to overfishing. Without intervention we’re looking at fish reaching borderline extinction level population within 30 years. Eating wild fish doesn’t put you on any better of moral standing than eating farmed.
wildmanyeah
Crew Member
Its funny eh for years they used an eat wild salmon campaign to get rid of fish farms and now that fish farms are leaving its if you eat wild fish your just as bad as a fish farmer.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
I know its tragic.
Whole in the Water
Well-Known Member
Waiting to see how things play out is exacting what DFO and the ENGO's would love for us to do - so they can screw the public fishery again!
NOW is the time to start to act to fight hard against these unfounded, baseless and indefensible recommendations that will basically shut down the public fishery on Southern Vancouver Island and the Vancouver area. It is not the time to wait and see - it is time to work together and push against these ridiculous recommendations as we do not have much time to do so! We all know now that DFO and the current Govt. does not honor anything but appealing to their ENGO's and their voting base - NOT the public/recreational fishing sector!
If these recommendations go through communities like Port Renfrew and Sooke, Bamfield and Ucluelet will be devastated economically and bigger areas like Victoria, Sidney, Duncan, Gulf Islands, Port Alberni, etc. will be hurt economically as well - not to mention the social and cultural impacts of gutting the public fishery in these areas.
If anyone seriously cares for the public fishery in these areas then NOW is the time to join and/or financially a lobbying group like SVIAC, SFI-BC, Public Fishery Alliance, etc. to help them in supporting this fight. NOW is the time to demand that DFO have open public consultations in the areas impacting by these recommendations. And most importantly, NOW is the time to attend those public meeting in large numbers to tell DFO this cannot happen!
Quite simply NOW is the time to act!
I would say that most ENGO's won't be happy until we are not eating either. Divide and its easy.
wildmanyeah
Crew Member
I had a former first nation chief tell me, "our chiefs are part of our fishery negotiations how come your mayors are not"
I thought it was a decent point
Fishtank
Well-Known Member
Where are these maps you are referring to? Anychance you can share them?
searun
Well-Known Member
Acting before having all the facts and details that are coming is sort of like....Ready, shoot, aim.
The SFAB is already very engaged in ongoing discussions with DFO, and working toward public meetings with key SFAC groups to gather in further input to inform DFO. Current step is they are gathering input from the SFAB Technical WG members and local SFAC Chairs, then DFO plans to consider and perhaps modify plans to seek broader engagement feedback.
That will happen between basically shortly from now until March when recommendations would go forward to the Minister for a decision. I would venture a guess that there will be further management measures for the upcoming 2022 season in time for when SRKW return. Some of those are likely to be the cheap way out - spatial closures.
I'm not suggesting that fixed spatial measures are a good thing, nor that they offer real protection while balancing social, cultural and economic impacts to many small coastal communities. A better way forward IMO is to adopt Adaptive Management Measures that are applied only when whales are actually using areas - that means having on-water guardians, with authority to close areas if necessary or strictly enforce other measures such as 400m avoidance zones around whales - those need a bit more teeth (consequences) for non-compliance IMO.
Regardless, if this Minister is serious about ensuring the Blue Economy in Coastal Communities thrive, she needs to do the economic cost/benefit analysis to see that paying for a Guardian program is small potatoes against the cost of spatial closures. But sadly, its far too easy to ignore small communities and these impacts from Ottawa and Vancouver to see that with some planning and investments we can strike a balance.
BTW, if you plan to write a letter to the Minister (and you should), review her Mandate Letter.....she was asked to make sure this government made progress protecting and building the Blue Economy (fishery related economic activity).
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
If you go on thread letter to minister there are links there.
searun
Well-Known Member
And that information is now out of date...things are changing fairly quickly. That is the risk of putting stuff out there before DFO has the material completed. They are working through first rounds of consultation, updating materials etc.
ILHG
Crew Member
I would look the Herring fishery to see where the Liberal "Blue Collar Economy" is on the priority list.
Local reaction to the cut in the fishery is a decent gauge of how much the local population supports the local blue economy. That's just my opinion. It's sad...
Same process that many here thought was excellent for cutting the herring fishery in half. Now it is not so great?
These closures will go through and then they will start working on the next round. As long as people act civil and take these restrictions with barely a whimper they will continue.
More consultation and meetings and letter writing will do nothing with DFO. Time for the east coast approach.
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