 Fishing

 Canada’s oldest industry  We have the longest coastline in the world  We have more lakes than the rest of the world combined (60% of all lakes are in Canada)  80% of catch is exported to 80 countries ($4.7 billion 2002) 48 lbs. Ling Cod Winter Harbour. B.C.

CategoryDescriptionExamples Groundfish Feed and are caught near the ocean floor Cod, halibut, haddock Pelagic fish Feed and are caught near the surface Salmon, tuna, herring Shell fish Animals without backbones & had protective shells Lobster, shrimp, oysters, scallops CodTrout Lobster

 Fishery: a place where fish are caught for commercial purposes OR the industry of catching or rearing fish  Inshore Fishery: commercial fishing done close to shore in small, independently owned boats  Offshore Fishery: commercial fishing done farther from shore in larger company-owned boats

One of the most common methods of fishing in the world. It involves towing one or more trawl nets behind a boat or in between two boats. Nets differ by their mesh size.

 Set horizontally on the ocean floor (demersal longlines)  Or set near the surface of the water (pelagic longlines).  Tens of kilometres long and carry thousands of hooks.  Baited hooks are attached to the longline by short lines called snoods that hang off the mainline.

 Towed dredges are used to collect shellfish such as scallops from the sea floor.  The dredge is towed along the bottom until it is full, then lifted onto the boat and the contents tipped out.

PacificInlandAtlanticCanada Number of registered fishing vessels 2 2 2, ,18918,840 Total volume of landings (metric tonnes) 129,51929,326673,923832,768 Total value of landings ($'000) 213,12367,3401,907,5142,187,977

AtlanticPacificCanada Total Volume of Landings (metric tonnes) 673,923129,519803,442 Groundfish79,86589,297169,162 Pelagics157,62232,346189,968 Shellfish419,6897,862427,551 Other16, ,761 Total Value of Landings ($'000) 1,907,514213,1232,120,637 Groundfish163,26395,344258,607 Pelagics107,52437,620145,144 Shellfish1,623,11680,1571,703,273 Other13,611213,613

 Historically Grand Banks have been one of the world's richest fishing grounds.  Most parts of the Grand Banks are less than 50 m deep  Light can reach the sea bed and favours reproduction of sea life.  Beyond the banks, the ocean floor descends to depths over 2,000 m

Decline in East Coast fishery since 1990 Newfoundland: Decline due to:  Overfishing by Canadians  Improved technology  Foreign factory ships  Changes in natural conditions

 English explorer John Cabot reported lots of cod  1600s s - Newfoundland prospers from cod fishery  The first factory-freezer trawler in the world could catch and process as much as 600 tons of fish in a single day. They were able to fish around the clock, year-round and in all but the worst of weather.  Cod stocks and the economies that were supported by them were in desperate shape. Governments worldwide responded with huge subsidies to assist fishermen.  In response to declining fish stocks, most countries passed a 200- mile fishing limit.  Cod populations continued to plummet to levels 1/100th of original population size. A moratorium on fishing was declared, putting 35,000 fishermen out of work.  All Atlantic cod fisheries were closed.  Atlantic cod populations were assigned endangered status  Canada allows a limited cod fishery but with very restrictive catch limits

 2Q00 What happened to the Cod Fishery? 2Q00  2z0b8 This Island That We Cling To 2z0b8

 Sport Fishing  Aquaculture  Seafood Production  Commercial Sturgeon, B.C.

Pros  Contain less toxins than farmed fish  Taste Cons  Harvesting can cause destruction of ecosystems and sea floor  Result in unintended bycatch  Less control over ocean pollution

Aquaculture:  Fish or shell fish raised under supervision, either on land in tanks or in cornered-off sections of the ocean

Pros:  high fish yields without the risk of overharvesting and depleting the wild species  reduce pressure on wild stock science/sustainable-fisheries-and- aquaculture/what-is-aquaculture/ Atlantic salmon farm

Cons: high concentration can lead to growth of disease and parasites if farmed fish escape, they could mate with wild fish and endanger native species salmonsacred.org/itinerary April, 2010

SeaChoice: Greenpeace working with Canada Safeway and the Overwaitea Food Group Avoid - wild cavier, king crab, haddock, wild scallops, farmed salmon, farmed shrimp, red snapper, tuna Best Choice - bass, clams, Dungeness crab, Pacific herring and halibut, wild Pacific salmon, northern shrimp, farmed trout, farmed mussels and oysters top-10-sustainable-seafood-picks/