The Conservation Council and our Fundy Baykeeper worked for months with a coalition of respected scientists and environmental lawyers to address changes made to the Fisheries Act by the former federal government.
On Thursday, March 24 we supported the launch of the West Coast Environmental Law and Nothern Confluence’s #Act4Fish campaign. It involved a briefing which outlines ideas on reforming Canada’s essential fisheries law, and a letter sent to Fisheries Minister Hunter Tootoo urging him to repeal the changes made in 2012.
The Conservation Council signed on to the letter along with nearly 50 law foundations, First Nations, conservation groups and environmental scientists. Read the full letter here.
The campaign and letter was covered by the Globe and Mail on March 24.
Linda Nowlan, staff counsel for West Coast Environmental Law, told the Globe and Mail that the former federal government gutted the Fisheries Act in 2012, a bill that had long been considered Canada’s most powerful piece of environmental legislation. The former government removed a section of the act that prohibited the harmful alteration, disruption and destruction of habitat, among other controversial changes.
“The first thing that can be done really quickly is to repeal the changes to the habitat provisions that were brought in under the old government,” Nowlan said. “Repeal that, bring back habitat protection the way it used to be, bring back the blanket prohibition on HADD … bring back what we had so it covers all fish, all habitat, all across Canada.”
Nowlan the government can undone these changes “very quickly” before shifting its focus to a longer-term redrafting of the Fisheries Act.