Department of Fisheries and Oceans failing its mandate - new report outlines needed changes -

May 4, 2004 -

VANCOUVER  – An overhaul of Canada’s Pacific fishery is urgently needed in order to sustain this essential resource, says a new report from the David Suzuki Foundation.

 

Seas of Change, Ten Recommendations for Sustainable Fisheries on the B.C. Coast by Suzanne Tank, M.Sc., sets out ten suggestions for West Coast fisheries, which are managed by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans.  The report was reviewed by stakeholders from industry, academia and government and is being released today at the World Fisheries Congress in Vancouver, which features world fish experts speaking on the theme of “Reconciling Fisheries with Conservation: The Challenge of Managing Aquatic Ecosystems.”

 

Among the recommendations developed in the report are: implement ecosystem-based management; use precaution in management decisions; protect diversity and habitat; create marine reserves to protect representative habitats; and, make aquaculture sustainable.

 

"Fisheries management as currently practiced is in a state of crisis and important species and habitat are at risk,” said Suzanne Tank, author of Seas of Change. “Fisheries and Oceans Canada spends the majority of their limited research and enforcement budget on only a few fisheries, making it impossible to fulfill their conservation mandate and manage fisheries properly.”

 

The report also suggests communities surrounding a fishery have an essential role in the decisions governing it, and that fisheries should be managed in such a way that the benefits flow to the fishermen and communities most directly tied to harvesting and protecting the resource.

 

Seas of Change provides a vision that can lead to healthy fish stocks, productive fish habitat and fisheries that are part of vibrant coastal economies that can be sustained over the long term. The David Suzuki Foundation calls on the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to adopt the ten principles into a truly integrated, ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management.

 

 

Please contact the David Suzuki Foundation to request a  PDF or paper version of the report, Seas of Change, Ten Recommendations for Sustainable Fisheries on the B.C. Coast.

 

For more information, contact:

Tamara Nowakowsky

Communications Specialist, David Suzuki Foundation

Phone:    604.732.4228 x270

Cell:    604.250.5474

e-mail:  tamara@davidsuzuki.org