FYI, came in the email regarding National Marine Conservation Areas:
To all:
I truly hope that all BC anglers heed the very serious warnings from their representatives about the threat to our tidal fisheries in the Gulf Islands, Juan de Fuca Strait and the Lower Georgia Strait. Please do not just turn off your radar when called to get involved and protect your right to fish and save our fishing opportunity. We are led to believe that the proposed Gulf Islands NMCA (Orca Pass marine waters area) is open to fishing; to date that's the spin in public by Parks Canada.....
(See Extract from N.A. Commission for Environmental Cooperation) Read this, maybe you'll shudder and then perhaps you will believe what people warn you about loosing your fisheries in our local waters:
I quote from their document: "Beyond the grant period, our longer-term goals are to win: official designation of an adequate network of no-take marine reserves within the transboundary area we have defined as Orca Pass; widespread public recognition and acceptance of Orca Pass as a special marine conservation and protection area;..." an extract from
http://www.cec.org/grants/projects/details/index.cfm?varlan=english&ID=152I especially refer to the point "an adequate network of no-take marine reserves" and please also note a Marine Protection Area (MPA) does not permit any fishing at all. Their stated goal is to see Orca Pass designated as a MPA. If that's the "line" from a conglomerate of protectionists who are part of the structuring of Orca Pass NMCA - with Parks Canada leading the charge, where do you think are we headed on recreational angling in the future.
Now perhaps one can comprehend the claim being made that Parks Canada are covertly using the Rockfish Conservation Area strategy as a tool to further their objective that is well beyond saving our rockfish stocks. Further in this web document, there is claim to have built positive relationships with the Sport Fishing Advisory Board. Coming to a South Coast meeting with a flashy brochure and a 20 minute presentation does not constitute consultation on fisheries closures. If they had told the truth of wanting the area declared a MPA with no extraction up front, I can hardly believe that Jeremy Maynard, Marilyn Murphy, Gerry Kristianson, Wayne Harling, Paul Rickard and I would all agree it's "positive". This is not a positive relationship but once again enviros using the claim of consultation and consensus to further their agenda. Also claimed in the document is the need to get over a 100 scientists involved in pushing for the MPA to happen.
If we do not get involved and without good reason our fisheries are taken away, we will only have ourselves to ask "why the hell did we let that happen".
Chris Bos
Fisheries Committee Chair - BC Wildlife Federation
Chair - Victoria Sport Fishing Advisory Board
Author
Topic: Upcoming public meetings/presentations (Read 1962 times)