Fishing Industry Needs More Quota Regulation: SCFL

Fishing Industry Needs More Quota Regulation: SCFL

Wednesday, September 23, 2009 at 14:10

 

 

The president of Saskatchewan Co-operative Fisheries Limited says the government’s draft fisheries management plan is a good start, but there needs to be input from the commerical fishers living in the province’s north.

 

Lennard Morin is attending a two-day fisheries management roundtable in Saskatoon, involving the Metis Nation – Saskatchewan and the provincial government.

 

Morin says fishers have recommendations for the plan, such as better regulating the fish quotas allowed for tourists.

 

“There’s so many users, and we’re trying to have some equality here, especially for the commercial fishermen, and the tourists that come in and deplete our lakes for their own purpose and there’s no regulation on them — that’s a problem, especially on the west side,” he says.

 

Morin says some type of management, whether it’s by Saskatchewan Environment or co-management with Metis and First Nations, is needed.

 

He says that’s because there have been abuses by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.

 

“The problem is there’s no dollars for these resource officers to patrol the areas. In some areas, there’s a free-for-all. So that’s what we’re trying to do away with, and that can be done through better management and training, new resource officers, and training our Metis people under the Wildlife Act.”

 

Morin says the government has discussed reinstating a patrol training program in the north, which would result in more officers being available to enforce fishing limits.