Fishing Closures
Valdes Island Conservancy Aims to Protect Fish Population
By: Janos Maté
Of the more than 7.2 billion people in the world we are among the select few to have retreats on Valdes Island, a relatively isolated haven, where the beauty and many gifts of nature nurtures us in so many ways. How privileged, how blessed are we.
With this privilege comes responsibility. Responsibility to never take our good fortune for granted. Responsibility to help protect as much as we can the lands and surrounding waters and ecosystems.
The Valdes Island Conservancy aims to do just that through several initiatives. One initiative is to cooperate with Fisheries and Oceans Canada in informing the public, including our Valdes community, about current closures in rockfish conservation areas.
Need for closures to protect the rockfish population
Fisheries and Oceans Canada ‘s publication “Rockfish Conservation Areas: Protecting British Columbia’s Rockfish” explains in detail the need to protect the rockfish population of BC’s inshore waters, and what type of fishing activity is permitted and not permitted.
The simple fact is that many areas in BC, including off of Valdes Island, have been over fished. Rockfish are territorial and do not swim far from their home reef. Consequently, once their population is severely reduced it takes many years for the rockfish population to replenish itself to safe levels.
The Fisheries booklet offers interesting facts, including: Many species of rockfish live to be over 100 years of age. Rockfish give birth to live young, after a one to two month gestation period. The majority of fish hooked and released do not survive. There are 102 species of rockfish worldwide; about 38 of these live in B.C.’s waters.
What is permitted and not permitted in the conservation areas
Basically, all forms of fishing (including rockfish, lingcod, salmon, sole) in the rockfish conservancy areas is NOT permitted. Permitted activity includes: trapping crabs, shrimp, prawns; hand picking invertebrates; and smelt fishing by gillnet. Inexplicably, commercial fishers are allowed to mid-water trawl for ground fish. For detailed information, see (http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/maps-cartes/rca-acs/index-eng.html )
Boundaries of the Valdes Rockfish Conservancy
Fisheries Canada provides detailed maps of the closed areas in the province. ( http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/maps-cartes/rca-acs/index-eng.html )
Lyackson / Valdes Island is part of Area 29. The detailed map (below) of the closed area is provided on-line at:
(http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/maps-cartes/rca-acs/rca-acs/south-sud/ValdesIslandEastChart3463-eng.html ). The closure is from Shah Point to the small bay just north of Starvation Bay. It extends approximately one mile into the Straight from the shores of Valdes.
What we can all do to protect the fish population.
* Educate: Educate ourselves and our own community about the biological importance of the closure, and make sure none of us, or our friends, fish inadvertently in the protected area.
* Communicate: Respectfully communicate to people fishing in the protected zone that in cooperation with Fisheries Canada we are informing them that they are in fact fishing in a closed, rockfish conservation area. At the same time we can inform them of the boundaries of the closure. The Valdes Island Conservancy will distribute electronically an information sheet that explains the closure and directs people to the right websites. We’ll be able to copy this sheet, and hand it to the public as we inform them about the closure. The Conservancy also plans to demarcate the beginning and the end of the closed area by placing two visible triangles on shore: one at Shah Point and the other past the small bay north of Starvation Bay.
Report: If people continue to fish, after they are informed, we can report them to Fisheries. Fisheries is asking for help to protect the fish and provide phone numbers for reporting violators: 1-800-465-4336 or in Greater Vancouver: 604-607-4186. Fisheries asks for the time, date and location of the violation, as well as description (perhaps a photo) of the boat and the people on board. Please see: (http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/rec/points/ORR-ONS-eng.html). As Fisheries writes: “An important goal of enforcement is the prevention of violations before damage is done. The watchful eyes of everyone can provide a strong deterrent to potential violators and stop offences before they happen.”
We are in the process of communicating with Fisheries to further explore other creative ways to ensure that the closure is honoured by everyone, so that everyone can participate in the protection of the fish population.
