Fisheries and Oceans

Opening remarks

Thank you, Madam Chair. Where the wild Atlantic salmon thrive, life thrives. They are a key indicator that we have clean air, clean water, healthy people and pristine ecosystems. This magnificent creature is a symbol of hope and resilience for all of us. Newfoundland and Labrador has approximately 70% of the rivers in Atlantic Canada, as well as 70% of the salmon stocks. If we can't get it right here, then I think the rest of the provinces, and probably the world, are doomed. There's a mental health aspect. I'm an educator in the school system, and I've been an angler for 40 years. We're teaching the young kids about how to raise baby salmon and release them into the river. There's a mental health aspect to being in nature. There are so many factors. So much positivity comes from the wild Atlantic salmon that it's invaluable. It's culturally authentic in Newfoundland and Labrador. My great-grandfather and grandfather were commercial salmon fishers on the North Atlantic Ocean. The indigenous folks relied on the wild Atlantic salmon for centuries. The cold-water salmon is probably the healthiest food you can eat. Now, we know that Mother Nature bats last all the time. She's the…

Opening remarks

There's a very important nuance to keep in mind. As you mentioned, there may be a host of factors, but what we experienced with the return of smolts—the young salmon—in 2023 and 2024 was a sudden and abrupt decline. Since then, we've certainly come to believe that there is a primary cause. Everyone agrees that it's probably related to climate change. That said, that's the indirect cause. What's the direct cause? Is it a lack of food? Is it early migration due to water temperatures? There's a lot of information to consider. One thing is certain: We have extremely productive rivers that have seen excellent smolt runs. The problem is that they don't return the following year.

Opening remarks

I'm sorry. Can you repeat the question, please?

Opening remarks

Thank you for the question. To be concise, it's extremely important. A big part of the work at the Mactaquac Biodiversity Facility is identifying the genetic strains of fish that would be well upstream of us. As an example.... Thank you to Mr. White and to the Quebec federation for answering questions about the demise of salmon, or the possibility of that, in their areas. In our case, if you add in three hydroelectric facilities on the river on top of all the issues they've talked about, it makes it extremely important. It adds weight to it. For me, it defies logic that the most endangered salmon have not seen any attention. In fact, the only attention they saw was the government's shutting down the biodiversity facility. It doesn't really make sense to me, but that's where I am. Thank you.

Opening remarks

Madam Chair, I'd like to start with a gift for the people from the various government parties. I have salmon here that I have carved. These are little salmon that I give to fishers these days. When I fish, I catch a salmon, and I give away a salmon. In the past, when fishers caught their salmon, they were proud. They would go home with their salmon and show it to their parents. They would eat it over the holidays. It was a moment of great joy. Right now, though, we're dying out. There are no more salmon. It's over. When I have a young fisher catching their first salmon, it's very sad, because they have nothing to bring home. It used to be a rite of passage, and that rite of passage no longer exists. For that reason, I carve out little salmon and, when a good opportunity presents itself, I give them away. I want the person catching their first salmon to have a keepsake, because that salmon is very important for their emotional side and their cultural side. We're losing the salmon culture, because there are no more salmon to catch. There are fewer and fewer of them. I have come here today to tell you that we're dying out. The Restigouche River represents 500 jobs and $15 million.…

Opening remarks

Madam Chair, members of the committee, good evening. Thank you for the invitation to appear today. I'm Nathan Wilbur, president of the Atlantic Salmon Federation. I'm joined by Neville Crabbe, vice-president of communications and special projects. ASF is a 78-year-old conservation organization dedicated to wild Atlantic salmon, with the goal of doubling annual salmon returns to one million. We work throughout eastern Canada and internationally conducting research, advocacy and on-the-ground conservation, always in partnership with indigenous communities, governments, grassroots organizations and scientists. Some of our most unique work has included creative conservation agreements with the Greenlanders to help keep harvest low at sea. This iconic fish drives over $200 million in annual spending and supports 3,800 jobs in eastern Canada, but much more than that, it is central to the cultural fabric of the region. The status of Atlantic salmon is mixed. In the north, Labrador and northern Quebec remain a global stronghold, but populations in the gulf region, Newfoundland, the Gaspé and the Maritimes need urgent help. Three major government-led studies in the past decade have…

Opening remarks

Thank you. My name is Butch Dalton. I'm the president of the Miramichi Salmon Association and the New Brunswick Salmon Council. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the committee today. I'm joined by my colleague Mark Hambrook, president emeritus. I'm here to provide the perspective of those working directly with Atlantic salmon conservation and to speak specifically to the factors affecting salmon recovery in the Miramichi. Atlantic salmon populations throughout Atlantic Canada have declined dramatically over the past several decades despite investments in research, habitat restoration, conservation measures and management interventions. There's no single cause for the decline. Atlantic salmon face multiple pressures throughout their life cycle, including changing ocean conditions, poor marine survival, warming rivers, habitat degradation and, specifically for this committee, predation. The challenge is that many of these pressures are occurring simultaneously, making recovery increasingly difficult. From the perspective of those working in the Miramichi, one of the most significant ecological changes over the past two decades has been the remarkable increase in…

Opening remarks

I remember when those recommendations were made, and efforts were made to try to get a grey seal harvest, especially by the private communities, but we always ran into roadblocks. One of the big ones is the marine protection act in the United States. If we harvest seals and use them for some purpose, they might ban our lobster imports. Trying to get a grey seal harvest has not been easy, even though there are people willing to do it and, I think, they have markets identified. It's been this political struggle. Certainly, on striped bass, we've increased the recreational fishing limits, and we have an indigenous commercial fishery, but they're all moving way too slow to make a difference. Fundamentally, this lower reference point of 330,000 is a real stumbling block for the DFO. We need it down to 100,000. We think that was a flawed study—the 330,000. We've asked the government to reconvene, bring different scientists in and get that lowered. If it were lowered to 100,000, we'd be able to do something more.