Fishing: An Industry in Crisis By: Jacob Mason, Breanna Mark, Nolan Russell, and Mairen Hamilton

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Fishing industry’s role in Canada’s Economy

Fishing is a way for people to set out, have a fun day getting together with their friends or family, or even just fish to sell the fish for money. Fishing is Canada’s oldest industry. There are many types of fishing they include: commercial fishing, overfishing, uncontrolled foreign fishing, destructive fishing, and sport fishing.

How is it done?

Commercial Fishing refers to the harvesting of fish, either in whole or in part, for sale, barter or trade. Four biggest methods of fishing are Long-lines, Gill Nets, Purse Seines, Bottom Trawlers.

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Long-Lines

Long-lining is one of the most widespread fishing methods. Ships unreel as many as 75 miles of line bristling with hundreds of thousands of baited hooks. The hooks are dragged behind the boat at varying depths or are kept afloat by buoys and left overnight, luring any animal in the area to grab a free meal. Once hooked, some animals drown or bleed to death in the water, and many others struggle for hours until the boat returns to reel them in. Billions of fish, sharks, sea turtles, dolphins, birds, and other marine animals are injured and killed by long-lines each year.

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Gill Nets

Ranging from 200 feet to more than a mile in length, gill nets are weighted at the bottom and held upright by floats at the top, creating what some have deemed “walls of death.” Fish are unable to see the netting, and unless the mesh size is larger than the fish, they get stuck. When they try to back out, the netting catches them by their gills or fins, and many suffocate. Others struggle so desperately in the sharp mesh that they bleed to death.

Gill nets are set and then left unmonitored, trapped fish may suffer for days. Many bleed to death before the ship returns to take them out of the ocean. Those who make it to the deck alive are ripped out of the net by hand and suffocate or are cut open while still alive. Fish who were caught deep in the ocean suffer from decompression, and the extreme change in pressure can cause their stomachs to be forced out of their mouths.

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Purse Seines

Another fishing method involves the use of a purse seines, which is the primary net used for catching tuna but which is also used for a variety of other fish species. This methods had aroused public outrage because dolphins are sometimes caught in nets. To catch tuna, fishers track pods of dolphins, who commonly swim with large tuna, and drop a net into the water surround the school of tuna. The edges of the net are slowly cinched together, trapping hundreds of tuna in the net, which is then drawn up and closed like a laundry bag.

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Bottom Trawlers

Bottom Trawlers target species such as orange roughy, cod, and haddock. Enormous bag-shaped nets are pulled along the ocean floor, catching every rock, piece of coral, and fish in their paths. Large metal plates at each end of the net drag along the ground, keeping the net close to the ocean floor while stirring up the sediment and forcing all the animals in the nets path into the closed end. Bottom Trawlers literally scrapes the ocean floor clean of life and is considered by some to be the underwater equivalent of clear-cutting forest.

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Renewable or Non-Renewable?

This industry is a renewable source because fish can reproduce themselves and multiply. However, if their habitat is destroyed or they are fished beyond their rate of reproduction, they will not be successful in renewing themselves fast enough to supply the fishing industry. If the fishing industry continues to overfish and destroy breeding grounds with their fishing practices, the industry will fail.

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Industry hotspots in Canada and why that area is a hotspot?

There is a wide variety of hotspots in Canada, but three are French River, ON, Eddie North Attawapiskat, ON, and Waterfall Lodge, Algoma, ON

French River, ON is considered one of the industry's hotspots because of its well known crystal-clear lake that includes such large weighing fish within. As well , people tend to call it a full service region with all the modern amenities you would find in an urban centre.

Eddie North Attawapiskat, ON is also considered one of the industry's hotspots because it has a long history that goes way back. Not only that but, its waterway highway serves the Canadian shield area and flows non-stop for 748 km east through the Hudson's Bay Lowlands into James Bay. Not to mention the area features a great number of historical treasures. It even includes hunting areas for all the hunters out there.

Waterfall Lodge, Algoma, ON is considered another one of the industry's hotspots because it includes cottages, fishing and hunting areas all in one place.

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Successes within the industry

Brings money in for the economy

Supplies many jobs for Canadians

Supplies food for Canadians

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Difficulties within the industry

One difficulty is that sharks, sea turtles, birds, seals, whales, and other non-target fish who get tangled in nets and hooked by long-lines are termed “by catch” and are thrown overboard. They fall victim to swarming birds or slowly bleed to death in the water.

Secondly, overfishing occurs when more fish are caught than the population can replace through natural reproduction. Gathering as many fish as possible may seem like a profitable practice, but overfishing has serious consequences. The results not only affect the balance of life in the oceans, but also the social and economic well-being of the coastal communities who depend on fish for their way of life.

Billions of people rely on fish for protein, and fishing is the principal livelihood for millions of people around the world. For centuries, our seas and oceans have been considered a limitless bounty of food. However, increasing fishing efforts over the last 50 years as well as unsustainable fishing practices are pushing many fish stocks to the point of collapse.

Lastly, the fishing techniques they use can ruin the animals habitats because bottom trawlers are considered “ocean floor cleaners” and it can push them to stay in different areas from where they usually settle down in and since overfishing is a problem the animals that usually eat the smaller fish and big fish are now going to starve because they are not there any more.

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Protection of the Fishing Industry

In 2010, $7.4 billion was the value of the products and exports of the commercial fishing industries with 85 000 people employed in these

industries across Canada. The fisheries of Canada plan on doing 4 things to protect the fishing industry of Canada:

1. The sustainability and ongoing productivity of Canada's commercial, recreational and Aboriginal fisheries.

2. Provide enhanced protection tools.

3. Provide clarity of regulatory requirements through the use of standards and regulations.

4. Enable enhanced partnerships to ensure organizations that are best placed to provide fisheries protection services to Canadians are enabled to

do so.

The Canadian government hopes that within the next 5 years the safety, protection and growth of the fishing industry will increase helping the

protection of fish and supply of jobs for many Canadians.16

Criticism against the fishing industry

This act states that the government would:

Try to manage any dangers, or threats to the sustainability and productivity of Canada's fisheries

Provide the fisheries with the tools they need to do their job safely

Set rules, requirements and regulations for the fisheries to follow

Many environmental groups praised the Fisheries Act saying it is “one of the strongest laws in Canada that can be used to protect our environment”

CriticismThese groups were very upset when the government made changes to the Act. Which now allowed for the fisheries to seriously harm their fish. Before the 1980`s Canada`s fishing Industry was booming, and this made fisheries need to continue to fish. Which has now resulted in the lack of fish in two main fishing industries The East Coast cod fishery was once one of the most profitable fisheries in Canada, but due to the lack of cod fish remaining it was forced to shut down in 1992.

These are the four main reasons Canada`s cod fish became nearly extinct

1.Overfishing

2.Improved Fishing Technology – help locate school of fish faster, new netting to catch more fish

3.Uncontrolled Foreign Fishing

4.Changes in Natural Conditions – water temp has dropped and salinity has fluctuated, more predators (seals)

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Bibliography

http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/stats/cfs-spc/tab/cfs-spc-tab1-eng.htm

http://fishncanada.com/hotspot-of-the-month/

http://www.frenchriver.ca/

http://www.eddienorth.com/

http://www.waterfallslodge.com/references/index.htm

http://coral.geog.uvic.ca/node/83

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/story.html?id=e2a38098-2d36-4070-9b80-ffc4799d319b

http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/pnw-ppe/changes-changements/index-eng.html

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Thanks!

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