Vice President of SIPS Michael Simmons and Director Geoff Krause participated in a Zoom discussion about herring on September 25th. Data summaries from last winter have been provided by DFO and paint a very similar picture of herring in the Strait of Georgia as the last several years. The situation is quite perilous, but DFO still awarded quotas that push the limits. The annual exercise is about to begin for the next winter season.
At the suggestion of Dr John Driscoll from David Suzuki Foundation, SIPS is sending letter below to John and Misty MacDuffee to support John at the next IHHPC meeting to be held October 10.
The letter reiterates the recommendations we made almost a year ago.
Misty MacDuffee, Secretary, Marine Conservation Caucus
Raincoast Conservation Society
John Driscoll MCC Member of IHHPC
David Suzuki Foundation
28th September 2024
Dear Misty and John,
You will recall that Saanich inlet Protection Society (SIPS) submitted suggestions for consideration in preparation of herring management plans for the 2023-24 fishing season on September 20, November 10 and 23 2023 to Minister of Fisheries Hon. Diane Lebouthillier. Our submissions were supported by Adam Olsen MLA and Hon. Nathan Cullen Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.
These are the Recommendations made by SIPS
Saanich Inlet Protection Society concludes and recommends:
- “To avoid the fast approaching collapse of herring populations in the Strait of Georgia, and the ecological consequences of such a collapse, including the effects on species at risk, DFO needs to act on its mandated “precautionary approach”. We therefore urgently request an immediate “pause” for all herring fisheries in the Strait of Georgia to allow for recovery before recovery becomes impossible. To be clear, for 2023 – 2024 there should be NO food and bait fishery and NO roe fishery. The Maximum Total Allowable Catch should be % zero.
- “The “pause” we recommend is essential for protection of species at risk and to protect large congregations of birds at critical stages in their life cycle. To comply with SARA, the IFMP for Herring should identify areas in which the listed species at risk, and other globally or continentally significant concentrations of birds have historically been dependent on herring spawn, especially immediately prior to migration, or at any stage in their life cycle. In these areas the herring fishery should be paused indefinitely.
Pacific Herring Recovery Plans are urgently required for:
“The southern Strait of Georgia, south of Dodds Narrows, where herring fisheries are currently closed, including areas 18 and 19 and those sections of area 17 south of Dodds Narrows, and
“The northern sections of the Strait of Georgia where herring fisheries are currently still permitted, including area 14 and those sections of area 17 north of Dodds Narrows.”
Nothing in the recently released DFO Pacific Herring Data Summaries provided by DFO1 25 July 2024 changes our recommendations.
SIPS received a response to our recommendations provided on behalf of Minister LeBouthillier from Neil Davis, Regional Director, Fisheries Management Branch, Pacific Region. His letter reminded us of the procedures followed by DFO in preparing the IFMP and assured us that “This input and updated stock assessment information informed the development of the 2023–2024 Pacific herring Integrated Fisheries Management Plan (IFMP), which will continue to protect and conserve herring stocks for the future”.
As the published plan did not address any of the recommendations made by SIPS and provided no evidence that the concerns identified in our submission had been considered, we therefore request the Marine Conservation Caucus urgently bring these concerns and recommendations to the attention of the IHHPC with the request that they be addressed in the herring management plans for 2024-25. We understand that the next meeting of the IHHPC will be held October 10 2024. We therefore request the MCC to request DFO include our recommendations in the agenda for that meeting and to allow adequate time for discussion.
Thank you for your support and attention to these vital issues.
Sincerely,
Michael Simmons, Vice President, Saanich Inlet Protection Society
1Marisa Keefe Sustainability Coordinator, Pelagics Fisheries
