The lobster fishery in the Northumberland Strait is in deep trouble, according to fishermen from New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
“It’s really bad. We had landings this low in the 1940s,” said Rory McLellan, general manager of the Prince Edward Island Fishermen’s Association. “Personally, I’ve never seen this kind of landings, especially with the kind of technology we have now.”
McLellan estimates that landings are off at least 59 percent since last year, and 80 percent off since the 1980s. He adds, “One fisherman with 250 traps brought back eight to 10 pounds of lobster the other day. How serious is this? Costs aren’t being met. Fishermen are looking at a choice between continuing to fish and losing money or stopping. This is probably going to be the end for a lot of fishermen.”
He also holds out little hope that the season will improve. “Historically, this fishery has always been marked by big landings at the beginning of the season,” he said.
McLellan said fishermen there are groping for an explanation. “Lord only knows why this is happening – global warming, environmental disease, natural biological cycle. The change could have come from a current change caused by the Confederation Bridge [linking Prince Edward Island to the mainland]. The fact is we just don’t know.”
Conditions are no better for New Brunswick lobstermen, according to Ron Cormier, a fisherman out of Robichaud and president of the Maritime Fishermen’s Union (MFU), based in Shediac.
“With the catches that were already very low in certain regions, this drop puts many people in a very difficult financial situation,” Cormier said. “New protection measures have been implemented this year, but they may be insufficient or not have yet had time to be effective. In any event, we have no choice; we have to continue searching for solutions to this situation.”
Cormier said that as many as 800 vessels set out Lobster Fishing Area 25 (Northumberland Strait) this season, and he added that catches have declined from 6,000 tons in 1985 to 3,000 in 2002.
“Unfortunately, the results of the first three weeks of the fishery do not indicate any reversal of this trend and it seems that we are headed for yet another decline in catches this year,” Cormier said. He also reported a 50 percent drop from last year.
Prices at the wharf were $4.50 for canners and $5.50 for market lobster until Aug. 31. In mid-September, the prices were $5 and $6 respectively.
“We have to continue the fight for more protection, we must examine all the measures which could permit us to increase egg production and we must pay special attention to the environment,” Cormier added.
On Sept. 10, federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault announced the creation of working groups “to examine, among other things, the status of the fishery in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence,” adding that “lobster landings in the southern Gulf have been decreasing steadily for the last number of years, and more importantly in the Northumberland Strait or Lobster Fishing Area (LFA) 25.”
Thibault said that area fishermen have indicated that “they are prepared to look at various measures designed to reduce the fishing effort.”
McLellan of the PEI association took a dim view of a reduced effort. “I don’t think restrictive measures are going to be successful,” he said. “Essentially you’re asking people who aren’t catching anything to begin with to catch even less. That’s just not reasonable.”
He added, “What needs to happen is immediate relief of some sort from the federal government, maybe a buy-back of some of the licenses to ensure the fishery remains viable for at least some of the fishermen.”
Meanwhile, DFO is “closely monitoring the fishery,” Thibault said. “It is critical that my department and the lobster industry work closely together to ensure that lobster in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence remains a sustainable resource that contributes to the economic vitality of local communities.”
Maurice Theriault, MFU project officer, says that his organization will participate in the working groups. “We’re interested, and we’ll participate in the task force. However, this has all happened so fast, we’re waiting to see what Minister Thibault’s specific agenda is. We’re glad at least that he has recognized that there’s a serious problem here.”
Concerning the work groups, McLellan said, “Somebody’s got to do something, I suppose. But we need quick and substantial intervention from Ottawa, but it appears that those days may be behind us.”
As to participation by the PEI group, he adds, “Hopefully they’ll be a number of people involved of which I will be one.”