The federal government has outlined four new measures for the snow crab fishery in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence to help protect the North Atlantic Right Whale.
The industry must reduce the amount of rope floating on the water, rope must be marked with a colour specific to each fishing area, buoys must be identified with sequential numbers and all lost gear must be reported.
This morning I announced four new fishery management measures that will reduce risks to the North Atlantic Right whales and help ensure their survival. Our government will continue to work to protect our waters and marine life for generations to come.https://t.co/hr6Pmgn19y pic.twitter.com/flCG8cCazO
— Dominic LeBlanc (@DLeBlancNB) January 23, 2018
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he expects 100 percent compliance from the industry during the upcoming snow crab fishery.
“We will be inspecting gear rigorously on wharves and also on the water. We will be enforcing these new measures and additional measures that I will be announcing in the coming weeks very aggressively,” he notes.
The measures are designed to reduce the number of whales getting entangled with fishing gear.
LeBlanc adds research has shown that a whale entangled in fishing gear can carry that gear with them for hundreds of kilometres.
During an aerial surveillance trip last year, Leblanc notes seeing a significant amount of lost or abandoned gear weeks after the season ended.
The new measures stem from feedback received during a ministerial roundtable with stakeholders which was held last November in Moncton.
(PHOTO supplied by DFO for Canadian Whale Institute)
