e-3965 (Fisheries)

The Minister has reviewed the concerns presented by the Honourable Member on behalf of his constituents.  The Minister and her staff have previous awareness of concerns raised by the Association for Denman Island Marine Stewards (ADIMS), of which the initiator of the petition is a member.

The Minister agrees that herring spawn areas, such as eelgrass, are an important and sensitive habitat, which is protected under the Fisheries Act and conditions of licence issued for Pacific Shellfish Aquaculture.  The Department has confirmed and shared scientific evidence with ADIMS in the past that indicates aquaculture activities, including those in the Baynes Sound and Lambert Channel areas where ADIMS is based, are not high risk to herring, and subtidal geoduck aquaculture, in particular, poses minimal, short-term impact to the sea floor.

The petition requests postponement of further shellfish aquaculture activities in the Baynes Sound/Lambert Channel area pending an ecosystem-based assessment on the impacts of the shellfish aquaculture industry’s activities on the herring stock. The Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) Regional Peer Review conducted a review of the potential impacts of new or modified existing shellfish aquaculture applications on the ecological carrying capacity in the Baynes Sound area. The conclusion of that review was that the area has not reached its maximum carrying capacity, but that a precautionary approach should be taken in three bays in the area. (ref: Research Document 2022/003 (dfo-mpo.gc.ca).)  The Department is respecting this advice.

The petition also called for postponement of further shellfish aquaculture activity in the area until the industry could establish a record of better managing facility infrastructure and associated debris. In 2019, the Department developed the “BC Shellfish Aquaculture Debris Strategy & Action Plan” to address long-standing non-compliance issues related to shellfish aquaculture debris. In April 2020 and following extensive engagement with industry, First Nations, and other partners and stakeholders, including ADIMS, the Department reissued shellfish aquaculture licences with updated conditions to help address the debris issue though requiring annual sea floor inspections and clean-up that began in April 2022, gear marking which started in April 2023, and electronic record keeping in sortable format to track product movements. The Department’s Conservation & Protection Branch has also been taking an active role in enforcing these new conditions with licence holders.