Notices to Fish Harvesters

Scallop – areas 16A, 16B, 16C, 16D, 16G and 18D seasons 2023-2025-CHP

Date of Notice

 

 

  1. Application

This Conservation-based harvesting plan (CHP) is aimed at scallop licence holders having access to sub-areas 16A, 16B, 16C, 16D, 16G and 18D – North Shore area, Quebec region. The CHP is in effect for the 2023 to 2025 seasons.

  1. Fishing areas

Sub-area 16A-1:      From Grande Anse to Pointe-du-Moulin

Sub-area 16A-2:      From Pointe-du-Moulin to Pointe-des-Monts

Sub-area 16B:          From Pointe-des-Monts to Pointe Jambon

Sub-area 16C:         From Pointe Jambon to Rivière Manitou

Sub-area 16D:         From Rivière Manitou to Phare Île aux Perroquets

Sub-area 16G:         From Rivière Corneille to the Natashquan wharf

Sub-area 18D:         Northeast of Anticosti island (Cap Observation to Pointe de l'Est)

The fishing areas coordinates are listed in the Conditions of licence and are also indicated on the fishing areas maps, which are available at the following address:

Commercial Fisheries 

  1. Fishing closures

    1. Coral and Sponge Conservation Areas in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence

On December 15, 2017, Fisheries and Oceans Canada created eleven coral and sponge conservation areas in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence in order to protect areas with high concentrations of sponges and sea pens.

All fishing activities that use bottom-contact gear or gear designed to come into contact with the sea bed, including but not limited to bottom trawls, dredges, gillnets, bottom longlines, bottom seines and traps, are forbidden in the conservation areas.

For more information and maps of the eleven coral and sponge conservation areas, please visit the dedicated DFO website: Coral and Sponge Conservation Measures in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence .

  1. Fishing seasons (dates subject to change)

Sub-areas 16A-1, 16A-2 & 16B:   April 15 to December 1

Sub-area 16C & 16D*:                   April 15 to November 3

Sub-area 16G & 18D*:                   April 22 to November 17

*The conditions for sub-areas 16D and 18D are valid for a maximum of 6 weeks.

The aforementioned fishing seasons are in effect for the duration of this CHP. They represent the maximum duration of fishing periods, subject to specific variation orders and closing periods, among other things. Thus, opening dates may vary according to particular circumstances and fisheries management considerations, such as industry requests and the TAC announcement, while closing dates may be advanced according to factors such as the reach of quotas or when the probability of exceeding them is high. The specific periods will be confirmed by Notices to fish harvesters or Variation orders.

It should be reminded that it is the responsibility of the captain to acquaint himself with the marine safety notices published by Environment and Climate Change Canada and Transport Canada as well as with the standards and best practices in marine safety and to take all measures necessary to insure a safe fishery during the period where fishing is authorized.

  1. Number of licences and access

Sub-area 16A:          1 licence

              16A-1:          1 access

              16A-2:          1 access

Sub-area 16B:          1 licence

Sub-area 16C:          2 licence

Sub-area 16D:          Open to all scallop licence holders residing between Sept-Îles and Pointe Parent, inclusively

Sub-area 16G:          3 licences and 2 access

Sub-area 18D:          1 licence and open to all scallop licence holders residing between Tadoussac and Pointe Parent including inclusively

  1. Quotas

Sub-area 16A-1 :      The Total Allowable Catch (TAC) is set at 8.72 tons (muscle), a status quo from the TAC for the last assessment period (2020 to 2022), as recommended by DFO Science management..

For sub-areas 16A-2, 16B, 16C, 16D, 16G and 18D, the fishing effort deployed from 2020 to 2022 was absent or insufficient to allow DFO Science to make recommendations. The TACs by sub-area are set as follows:

 

Sub-area 16A-2 :     TAC   3,8 t (muscle)

Sub-area 16B :         TAC   6,8 t (muscle)

Sub-area 16C :         TAC 12,8 t (muscle)

Sub-area 16D :         TAC   6,1 t (muscle)

Sub-area 16G :        TAC 13,7 t (muscle)

Sub-area 18D :         TAC 10,0 t (muscle)

These TACs are a status quo compared to the last evaluation period. However, DFO reserves the right to review these before the end of the current fishing plan cycle, if necessary.

  1. Management regime

Competitive fishery with total allowable catches per fishing sub-area.

  1. Fishing gear

Scallop dredge for which the sum of the width of the baskets must not exceed 7.32 meters (24 feet).

  1. Management measures to minimize the risks of interactions with the North Atlantic Right Whale

Since 2017, Fisheries and Oceans Canada has put in place additional management measures to protect marine mammal including the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale from entanglement in fishing gear and ship strikes. These measures take into account the best available scientific data and can be adapted if necessary to take into account future developments regarding interactions prevention.

The following requirements have been implemented in order to reduce the risk of entanglement of North Atlantic Right Whales:

    1. Requirement to report lost and retrieved gear

Lost gear reporting

Lost fishing gear is defined as any active fishing gear previously set by the licence holder and fishing vessel operator which was sought but not found.

The licence holder or fishing vessel operator must report any of their lost fishing gear within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of lost gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) through the FISHING GEAR Reporting system available online at Sign in  or by completing the Lost fishing gear form available online at Reporting requirements for commercial fisheries   or in Annex of Conditions of licence, according to instructions on the form.

Retrieved gear reporting

The licence holder or fishing vessel operator must report the retrieval of any of their own previously reported lost gear within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of retrieved gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) through the Fishing gear reporting system available online at Sign in  or by completing the Retrieval of previously reported lost fishing gear form available online at Reporting requirements for commercial fisheries or in Annex of Conditions of licence, according to instructions on the form. Retrieval can only occur during the validity period of the Conditions of licence and only in relation to the specific type of gear authorized to be used by the Conditions of licence.

    1. What to do if you observe a North Atlantic right whale

First of all, it is important to maintain a minimum distance of 100 meters from the animal and 200 meters if the whale is accompanied by a calve. Details regarding sightings of live and free-swimming right whales may be provided to DFO at: XMARWhalesightings@dfo-mpo.gc.ca or by phone at 1-844-800-8568. If you observe this species, please send us your contact information and information about the sighting (date, time, geographical position, number of individuals, etc.). If possible, you can also send us photos or videos.

If you see a right whale entangled in fishing gear, you should not under any circumstances attempt to release it on your own. The behaviour of an entangled individual is unpredictable and dangerous. You should contact "Marine Mammal Emergencies" at 1-877-722-5346 as soon as possible to share information that will help to organize an appropriate response by experts (time and position of the entangled animal, behaviour of the individual, details on the weather and the state of the sea, etc.).

  1. Marine mammal interaction reporting

Licence holders must provide information regarding all interactions with a marine mammal that occur during fishing expeditions including: bycatch, collisions and all sightings of entangled marine mammals. To do this, the Marine Mammal Interaction Form must be completed and submitted by email to DFO.NAT.InteractionsMM-InteractionsMM.NAT.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca within 48 hours after the end of a fishing trip.

A copy of the form is attached to the Conditions of licence and can also be downloaded and submitted online at the following address:  Report a marine mammal or sea turtle incident or sighting 

The information provided on this form will be used by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) to estimate levels of accidental mortality and injury to marine mammals. This information will allow DFO to better assess the types of threats that may affect Canada's marine mammals and to develop mitigation strategies.

In addition, if you observe a dead or distressed animal, please contact Marine Mammal Emergencies as soon as possible at 1-877-722-5346. If possible, do not hesitate to take photos or videos that will allow DFO to assess the situation and identify the species.

  1. Hail-out

Hail-out is mandatory for licence holders of sub-areas 16A-1 and 16C.

  1. At sea observer

At-sea observer coverage, at industry expense, is shown below in the sub-areas concerned for fishing trips made by the fleet during the fishing period.

Sub-area 16A-1:      Coverage of 5% of fishing expeditions.

Sub-area 16C:          Coverage of 5% of fishing expeditions.

  1. Dockside monitoring

When licence holders fish in one of the sub-areas covered in this CHP, prior to the beginning of a fishing expedition, they must have signed an agreement relative to hail-in with a dockside monitoring company legally designated by DFO, whose list is available at the following address:

Monitoring Programs 

Licence holders must contact this same company at least one hour before the scheduled time of arrival at dockside for a landing.

Dockside monitoring is mandatory for sub-area 16C.

  1. Catch and effort data declaration

    1. Combinded form /Logbook

Licence holders must acquire their booklet of Combined Forms from a prequalified supplier identified by DFO, whose list is available at the following address:

Prequalified Logbook Suppliers .

The Logbook section must be completed before arrival at port and the completed form must be sent to DFO after each fishing expedition.

  1. Vessel monitoring system

In sub-areas 16A and 16C, vessels must be equipped with an active vessel monitoring system (VMS) approved by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Each licence holder must register their approved VMS with DFO before the beginning of their fishing activities. Data must be transmitted every 15 minutes.

The current list of DFO-approved VMS units and the procedure and form to register a VMS unit are available at the following address:

http://dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/sdc-cps/vessel-monitoring-surveillance-navire/index-eng.html

  1. Incidental catches

Any fish caught incidentally shall be returned to the water immediately where it was caught and in a manner that causes the least harm to the fish if it is still alive.

  1. Boat

Boat leasing from outside the Quebec region will not be authorized.

  1. Species at risk act

Pursuant to the Species at Risk Act, no person shall kill, harm, harass, capture, take, possess, collect, buy, sell or trade an individual or any part or derivate of a wildlife species designated as extirpated, endangered or threatened.

At the time this Conservation Harvesting Plan is promulgated, the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence species susceptible to being captured are the following: the Spotted Wolffish, the Northern Wolffish, the Leatherback Turtle and the Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River population). New species could be added during the course of the year.

All incidental captures of species at risk must be immediately returned to the water where they were captured and, if the animal is still alive, in the manner that causes it the least harm. All incidental captures of species at risk must be recorded in the « Species at Risk » section of the logbook. Furthermore, all interactions with species at risk, notably the North Atlantic Right Whale, the Blue Whale (Atlantic population), the Beluga Whale (St. Lawrence Estuary population) and the White Shark (Atlantic population), must be recorded in this section of the logbook.

These requirements are additional to any obligation to declare an interaction with a marine mammal using the prescribed form (see section Marine mammal interaction reporting).

  1. Crew registry

Since April 1st, 2021, inshore commercial licence holders, and their approved Substitute Operators, must keep records of all the crew members working aboard the vessel on every fishing trip. These records must be maintained by the licence holder for a period of five (5) years. This requirement does not apply to pre-1979 corporation licence and to any licence issued under the authority of the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations. For further details, refer to the March 17th, 2021 Notice to Fish Harvesters at Notice detail - Online Publications Tool  or contact the Licensing Office at 1-877-535-7307 or fishing-peche@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

  1. Discharge of waste

Since 2022, all commercial fisheries in Canada have a new condition of licence relating to the discharge of garbage from Canadian fishing vessels. The licence holder is prohibited from discarding in Canadian fisheries waters from their vessel any item that may be harmful to fish or fish habitat . Please refer to the following New condition of licence relating to discharge of garbage season 2022 (2022-03-29) (dfo-mpo.gc.ca)

 

 

  1. Conditions of licence

To obtain their Conditions of licence, fish harvesters must access the National Online Licensing System. For National Online Licensing System assistance, please contact customer support by phone at 1 877‑535-7307 or by email at fishing-peche@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

 

Approved by:

Maryse Lemire

Fisheries Management Regional Director

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Quebec

For any question regarding this CHP (lorsqu’applicable)

You may call at 1-800-463-1729

 

For additional information

Please visit our website at the following address:

Fisheries .

 

 

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