Whale sighting leads to early fishery closure

The decision by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to close early a productive lobster fishery area east of Grand Manan because of a reported sighting of an endangered right whale has angered fishermen. At 7 p.m. on June 18 DFO ordered the closure of a portion of Lobster Fishing Area 38 in the Grand Manan Basin, with all traps to be out of the water by June 22 at 10 p.m. The season is scheduled to close on June 29.
"There was only one sighting of one whale reported to be travelling," says Grand Manan Fishermen's Association (GMFA) President Brian Guptill. "This could cost our community hundreds of thousands of dollars."
GMFA Lobster Sector Chairman Laurence Cook says the region, which is a critical right whale habitat area, "is a very lucrative spot," with about a third of the Grand Manan fleet fishing there. With some boats catching 20,000 to 30,000 pounds of lobsters a day, and 35 to 40 boats fishing there, he says the economic loss will be significant.
Also, Cook and other fishermen are questioning the reported sighting. The report came from a U.S. NOAA Fisheries boat, with the whale being spotted two miles away, according to Cook. He wants to know who saw the whale and whether they are qualified to make a right whale identification from two miles. "I question whether it was a legitimate sighting." As of the morning of June 20, the whale had not been seen since, although planes and boats have been looking for it. The GMFA's approach to confirm a whale's presence is to have a confirmed identification, a second sighting and a photograph of the whale.
"They couldn't see it again," says Cook. "That's not too much to ask, if you're putting hundreds of people out of work and costing the economy hundreds of thousands of dollars. It's bizarre to close it down with that little evidence." He adds that eye-witness accounts are considered "the worst evidence" by law enforcement agencies.
"To close us down is cruel and unusual punishment," Cook maintains, blaming Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Dominic LeBlanc, who made the decision. "He has done irreparable damage to the relationship between the industry and the department."
In 2006 the GMFA, in cooperation with DFO, developed a right whale mitigation strategy when North Atlantic right whales remained in the Bay of Fundy into November. Cook notes that with 35 right whales in the area, there was not a single entanglement.
"We've had a successful mitigation strategy for 12 years, and in that time have not had an entanglement of a right whale in our lobster gear," says Cook. "It has allowed our fishermen to continue fishing without hurting the whales."
The Grand Manan Fishermen's Association is calling on DFO to review its policy regarding fishing closures for right whales. The association notes that over the past several weeks areas in the Gulf of St. Lawrence have closed to fishing because of right whales, despite efforts of fishermen through the Maritime Fishermen's Union to provide reasonable alternatives that could allow the fishery and right whales to coexist.
"It is important that the decision-makers in Ottawa talk to the people who are involved in the fishery and understand what is happening on the water," Guptill says. "There needs to be a reality check."
Concerning the closure in the Bay of Fundy, Karen Ludwig, member of Parliament for New Brunswick Southwest, states, "Although these closures are a real challenge for harvesters in our coastal communities, we need to get this right or we put at risk the certifications that permit us to export $6 billion of seafood to international markets annually. The measures that were implemented by DFO in April of this year will be reviewed in consultation with industry for next year."
She adds, "The study by the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans this fall, as a result of my Private Members Motion, will draw out the effectiveness and impact of measures that have been implemented to date and recommend changes. We need to do this for the long‑term sustainability of our fishery and the livelihood of harvesters in our coastal communities."
The North Atlantic right whale is listed as an endangered species, with a population estimated at around only 450. Deaths of right whales along the east coasts of the U.S. and Canada during 2017 have been declared an Unusual Mortality Event by NOAA Fisheries, with 12 dead whales in Canada and five in the U.S. that year, along with five live whale entanglements in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.