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[IronNoggin]

Currently our local SFAB Reps are at the Prawn Multi-Sectoral Meetings and they are being beat up by commercials with no support from DFO. If you value your access to prawns you might drop a short note to the the following expressing your desire to prawn, your thoughts on the access to the resource, along with the manner in which the commercial has been almost given the entire resource.

Laurie Convey: Laurie.Convey@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Sue Farlinger: Susan.Farlinger@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Paul Sprout: sproutpa@pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Randy Kamp: Kamp.R@parl.gc.ca

Minister Shea: Shea.G@parl.gc.ca

What I have fired off:

Dear Minister Shea and DFO Representatives,

I am writing to express my concern and dismay regarding reports received from the proceedings at the ongoing prawn multi-sectoral meetings. I find the bullying and pressure tactics taken by the commercial sector, and the stance apparently favoring their position by DFO repulsive. These positions smack of collusion between the Department and a single user group, at the expense of all others who both use the resource, and care deeply about its' well being / sustainability.
It is more than a little reminiscent of the unilateral allocation regarding halibut access, and the quagmire we are now all immersed in as a consequence of that unfortunate action.

From DFO's own data base it can be drawn that the commercial catch has grown from one million pounds a few short years ago, to over 6 million pounds last year. This harvest rate has grown annually under your "management" policies. The results have to date been borne by the recreational sector, now facing "Conservation Closures" in many areas in an attempt to rebuild the stocks in order to support the next round of increased pressure from commercial interests. It would appear that there is no parity nor consideration being leveled towards the recreational sector, nor the resource itself in these decisions.

Although the commercial stance is one which expresses dominion over every prawn that exists in our waters, I always understood that this resource belongs to ALL Canadians, which includes equal access for all sectors, not simply regulated to a "possession" of the commercial fleet. Have I been in error in this belief? Is there yet another mechanism being undertaken to hand a public resource over to a private interest, turning what was once a "Common Property" now into a "Commodity" (as was undertaken in the case of the halibut allocation)?

From the reports generated from the sectoral meetings, it is becoming apparent that when duly elected representatives of the recreational fishery note the same type of concerns I am writing to express today, their concerns are simply ridiculed and rejected by the commercial sector representatives. While I do not personally find that all too surprising, the subsequent abandonment of the expressed recreational interests and concerns by the Department is more so. This leads to the question of whether the Department is truly considering the concerns of ALL sectors, or simply catering solely to those of commercial interests?

I am understandably quite disturbed by your lack of action in terms of responsible resource management in these matters. Further I find your catering to the pressure tactics openly displayed by the obviously biased commercial sector particularly nauseating. Catering to those interests has caused the recreational sector to realize limited, and at times, denied access to the resource due to over-exploitation of said resource via commercial fishery activities. This does not represent "responsible" management nor "equal consideration" in a great many folk's eyes.

I therefore call on you to responsibly manage the resource for the sake of its' conservation and sustainability, provide for equal access by ALL sectors when the populations are robust enough to support that, and to cease catering to a single (commercial) sector's interests above all else in these considerations. Further I would strongly suggest that as Stewards of the Resource, you provide the elected representatives of the recreational sector with a congenial atmosphere, representative of civility and professionalism, in which to present our sector's concerns - without the belittlement and ridicule that appears to be carrying the day within the ongoing discussions.

Time is pressing on this issue, the meetings are already underway, and obviously being side-tracked by the commercial sector. Your attention to these issues will greatly help in dissipating concerns regarding the Department's collusion with the same.

I would appreciate the courtesy of a response from each of you.

Sincerely,

J. M Stabler
Port Alberni
Concerned Recreational Prawn Fisher

CC:
SFAC Port Alberni
SFAB South Coast

[NFM]

The BC prawn fishery is one of the strongest commercial fisheries still going on in BC . It is a trap fishery which eliminates mass bi catch . It is not a bottom trawl fishery which we all know destroys the bottom of the ocean and catches mass amounts of other species. Unlike sport fisherman the commercial fisherman have to grade through the prawns and make sure they meet a certain size ( throwing back all berried prawns and smalls ) I would like to hear why you think it is miss managed ? Us sports fisherman have the rite to go out and catch our fair share of prawns. I don't see what the DFO is doing that is so wrong for us sporties ?