Fisheries report sidesteps key question

After hearing from dozens of witnesses and drafting 40 recommendations, the federal standing committee on fisheries and oceans has managed not to render an opinion on whether moderate livelihood fisheries should be required to take place during the commercial season.

The committee issued its overdue report Thursday into how to implement the right of the Mi’kmaq and Maliseet to make a moderate livelihood off of the fisheries.

The report comes as the clock ticks down to a faceoff between the Sipekne’katik First Nation, which claims Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan has no authority over their fishery, and Jordan herself, who issued a statement in March saying she would accommodate moderate livelihood fisheries but that they must take place during the local commercial season.

The report’s recommendations are largely to do with developing co-management plans for First Nations fisheries, building bridges between the First Nation and commercial fishing communities, creating joint science programs to link the parties and working to end systematic racism.

The report does take a stand on the contentious issue of who has ultimate authority over the fishery.

“Only DFO has both the regulatory and enforcement responsibility under the rulings by the Supreme Court of Canada,” reads ones of the reports recommenations.

“Any moderate livelihood fishery for First Nations must fall under DFO regulation and enforcement as outlined by the Supreme Court of Canada. Any co-management of the moderate livelihood fishery must fall under this structure and must balance mutually agreeable and mutually beneficial outcomes for non-indigenous attachment to the fishery.”

The report also states that moderate livelihood licences issued by DFO be subject to the same conservation rules as commercial licences. Those rules can include seasons.

“We felt the best way forward is to have Mi’kmaw and commercial fishermen at the table,” said Jaime Battiste, Liberal MP for Sydney —Victoria and who is both a member of the committee and Mi’kmaq.

“It’s how we get everyone on the same page.”

Battiste said the report didn’t take a position on whether individual moderate livelihood fisheries be required to take place during the local commercial season because that would have been too restrictive.

“The moderate livelihood fishery is community to community so taking a pan approach to every single community is inconsistent with what we’ve asked communities to do,” said Battiste.

“Which is put their plans forward. We want to make sure their plans are all about the sustainability of the resource for the future.”

The Conservative party issued an addendum to the report with its own list of recommendations.

Those include that the over 1,000 commercial licences bought up by the federal government and transferred to Mi’kmaq and Maliseet First Nations in the wake of the 1999 Marshall Decision be required to be fished by First Nations fishermen.

“The federal government spent six to seven hundred million dollars providing licences, equipment and training to First Nations communities,” said Chris D’entremont, MP for West Nova.

“I wonder how many of those licences are actually fished by Mi’kmaq. I would suggest majority fished by industry. We need to find a way to ensure that access goes to Mi’kmaq fishers.”

Many First Nations lease some or all of their commercial licences and then use the revenue for running band operations.

D’entremont called the standing committee report “a largely aspirational document to do with reconciliation” that falls short of providing concrete recommendations that could help avert a renewal of the conflict on St. Mary’s Bay.

“We’re working really hard with coastal communities to try and get them to stay home,” said D’entremont of the largely Acadian communities around lower Saulnierville, from which Sipekne’aktik intends to launch its fishery.

“To try and let (DFO) sort this out. I think to a certain point those communities have been listening. They want to see a path forward. I don’t think the (committee’s report) provides that path.”