Advocates and scientists are raising concerns with the availability of data on one of Canada’s largest fisheries, as the Department of Fisheries and Oceans DFO is waiting on industry to provide data on the herring fishery in southwest Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy.
For decades, herring stock has been declining, and has been in the critical zone since 2018.
In July, DFO reduced the total allowable catch to 16,000 tonnes per season, from 21,000, fixing the quota at the reduced level until 2027. Since then, advocates say the Herring Science Council — an industry body that, through an agreement with DFO, gathers the data that’s the only source of scientific information on the fishery — has not provided to the department the information it has collected.
As herring is slated for a legally-binding rebuilding plan under the Fisheries Act in the new year, good scientific data about the stock will be even more important, advocates say.
“Fish are a public resource in Canada — they’re not owned by any one sector,” said Katie Schleit, fisheries director with the NGO Oceans North.
“This is a contractual agreement based on a public resource that’s managed by the government. It’s not really up to one party to not live up to the terms of that agreement.”
Data on the herring stock in the Bay of Fundy and southwest Nova Scotia is gathered via at-sea acoustic surveys of spawning stock biomass.
The Herring Science Council conducts those surveys on DFO’s behalf, along with biological sampling of herring to determine herring size, maturity and population dynamics. It did not respond to multiple requests for an interview.
DFO confirmed the council is responsible for at least five acoustic surveys a year of Scots Bay and German bank spawning areas. Federal scientists independently analyze the data, and the information is used to generate DFO’s science advice.
In a statement, DFO spokesperson Christine Lyons said the department often works with partners, including in the fishing industry, to collect data about Canada’s aquatic resources.
DFO received length-frequency and sample data from the Herring Science Council in November “and continues to work with the [council] to obtain the acoustic survey data,” Lyons said. That data will “inform the next evaluation of the status of the stock.”
But the fishery has been a source of disagreement since the quota cut in July. At the time, the Seafood Producers Association of Nova Scotia said the reduction was “shocking” and unnecessary, and that quota should be maintained at 21,000 tonnes.
The association also said the cut would have consequences for fishing communities in the region, making it harder for companies to operate.
Dan Boyce, a marine ecologist and adjunct professor at Dalhousie University, said looking at a range of health indicators, he and his colleagues observed that herring has been declining off Nova Scotia and New Brunswick’s shores since 1965.
Their research found that while the changing environment and predation played a role, fishing was the strongest single driver of the downturn.
Beyond supporting fishing communities, herring is essential for a range of species from seabirds to whales. Boyce said to have good fisheries management going forward, there needs to be good data and it is already limited.
He said that industry withholding what data there is is “troubling,” as is the department’s dependence on industry as a source of information.
“This situation shows why it’s a bit of a risky proposition … to be relying on the industry to collect data that you’re using to assess the fishery and then make decisions about how much quota the industry can take.”
Not providing data ‘an ultimatum’
Jack Daly, marine scientist with Oceana Canada, said for the industry to not provide information after the quota cut amounts to a game of chicken.
“What really it comes down to is an ultimatum,” he said. “It’s really quite bizarre, particularly for a public resource.”
He said Oceana and other organizations have asked DFO to clarify the situation, to make clear what’s happening, and for industry to provide their rationale.
Daly said the longer it takes to get the information about the stock, the longer it’ll take to rebuild herring out of the critical zone.
With industry expressing interest in contributing to the scientific process in other fisheries, and DFO relying on industry partners, Schleit, with Oceans North, said there are broader implications
“If you have this kind of model where industry is withholding data for a certain objective that doesn’t meet the common good, that really sends the wrong signal in terms of these relationships going forward.”