Federal Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Transport Canada’s Marc Garneau announced additional plans this morning for protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale.
An earlier start to the snow crab fishing season, along with fixed and temporary closures where whales are spotted and a speed limit for ships in the western Gulf of St. Lawrence have been unveiled.
“We are very confident that these measures will have a very significant impact in protecting right whales and in ensuring their recovery,” LeBlanc said during the press conference.
After consultation this winter with partners, experts, stakeholders and Indigenous groups, the government announced the following measures to be put in in place in 2018:
- A mandatory speed restriction from April 28 until November 15 for vessels 20m or longer to a maximum of 10 knots when travelling in the western Gulf of St. Lawrence.
- Allowing vessels to travel at normal speeds in parts of two shipping lanes north and south of Anticosti Island when no whales are in the area. A 15 day slowdown of 10 knots will be activated within a section of the shipping lanes when one North Atlantic right whale is spotted and can be extended as needed.
- All snow crab gear in area 12 must be removed from the water by June 30, 2018, two weeks earlier than normally scheduled. The season will begin two weeks earlier.
- Introduction of temporary and fixed fisheries management areas and closures where right whales are observed.
- Lifting the ban on right whale disentanglement following a review from experts. Fisheries and Oceans Canada will commit one million dollars per year to support marine mammal response groups.
- Reducing the number of traps in the mid shore fishery in Crab Fishing Area 12.
- Increasing aerial and at-sea surveillance to detect whales.
- Implementing licensing requirements for certain fisheries to keep better track of rope and buoys, and mandatory reporting of all gear.
- Adding a reporting requirement to all commercial licenses that all interactions with marine mammals must be reported.
These new measures aim to protect the endangered right whales from further harm and minimize possible economic losses for local economies. In addition to these measures, two ropeless trap methods will be tested by New Brunswick fishermen this spring to reduce the use of fishing rope blamed for the deaths of two of the whales last year.
Earlier this year, LeBlanc announced measures for the operation of the snow crab fishery in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, including reducing the amount of fishing rope floating on the surface and mandatory reporting of all lost gear.
At least 18 North Atlantic right whales have been found dead since last year — 12 in Canadian waters and six in U.S. waters. Scientists believe human activity, including shipping and fishing, was the primary cause. There are only about 450 right whales left in the world, and of those only about 100 are reproducing females.
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