N.S. fisheries minister says feds not taking illegal fishing seriously

Nova Scotia's fisheries minister left a meeting Thursday with his federal counterpart feeling "frustrated and disappointed" at what he says is a lack of urgency from Ottawa to address illegal lobster fishing.

"It's just showing me in a different way that this minister and this department is not taking the issue as seriously as they need to," Kent Smith said in a phone interview from the Ottawa airport.

"I didn't get a commitment to add any resources to address illegal lobster fishing in Southwest Nova, which is what I've been calling for for months and months."

Smith has written multiple times to federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier asking for a meeting and calling for more enforcement in and around the wharf in Saulnierville, N.S., an area at the heart of concerns about illegal fishing. Smith has linked the illegal lobster fishery to organized crime, and there's been community speculation that arsons and a shooting reported in the nearby Meteghan area are related to the lobster industry.

Lebouthillier's office issued a news release following the meeting with Smith, saying that both ministers share a concern about illegal activity, safety, and violence in the fishery.

'Significant enforcement resources' allocated to N.S.

The statement said Lebouthillier underscored Ottawa's commitment to working with Nova Scotia, Indigenous communities, the industry and stakeholders "to provide for a sustainable lobster fishery for Nova Scotians." 

"As a reflection of this commitment, the department has allocated significant enforcement resources to monitoring compliance with the Fisheries Act and associated regulations in the lobster fishery," the statement said. 

"Fishery officers have been taking enforcement measures ranging from compliance awareness to making arrests and seizing unauthorized catch, equipment and vessels."

On Wednesday, federal fisheries officers raided a lobster plant in Shelburne County, seizing $100,000 worth of lobster and making an arrest. A statement from DFO said charges under the Fisheries Act could follow.

But there have been ongoing concerns from Smith and other provincial politicians, along with members of the commercial fishing sector, that enforcement levels are not where they need to be. Some fisheries officers are refusing work on the grounds that their safety is at risk, although DFO officials have maintained that they have the necessary resources in place.

On Friday, DFO issued a news release saying that fisheries officers have faced increasing threats and acts of violence while doing their jobs.

It mentioned two incidents last month in St. Marys Bay: the department said in one case, officers attempted to board and inspect a fishing boat when the operated made manoeuvres to evade the boarding; in the other case, officers faced an attempted assault while conducting "routine at-sea enforcement activity."

The release said that in the latter case, officers made arrests and seized a boat and unauthorized lobster traps.

A call for 'true collaboration'

Some commercial groups have said American boats are crossing into Canadian waters to fish because of a lack of enforcement, and they allege that some First Nations crews are not following the rules, a claim First Nations leaders dispute.

"DFO officers are not the victims, and we will not accept this narrative," Sipekne'katik First Nation Chief Michelle Glasgow said in an email to The Canadian Press.

The commercial season in the area does not begin until next month. While there is some fishing happening in the area related to the Indigenous food, social and ceremonial fishery, catches obtained under those agreements cannot be sold.

In a separate email to The Canadian Press, Chief Wilbert Marshall, co-lead of fisheries for the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaw Chiefs, said conflicts within the fishery have existed for more than 20 years, and things need to change.

"We want a future where these types of safety issues can be avoided, but we need true collaboration to get there," Marshall wrote.

Feds concerned about unreported cash sales

Smith said he received "a minor commitment" from Lebouthillier to try to increase communication between bureaucrats, but he said that won't address the need for more enforcement on the water.

The statement from Lebouthillier's office also said that unreported cash sales in the fisheries need to be eliminated because they help fuel criminal activity. The province has jurisdiction for fish buyers and processors. Smith said Lebouthillier's focus on that issue "misses the point."

"Even if we caught every single penny of illegal cash sales that were taking place in this industry, that does nothing to address the ongoing sustainability of our most valuable natural resource."

The Progressive Conservative cabinet minister said he would regroup with his team to determine the next best step to try to compel Lebouthillier to prioritize enforcement on the water.

He said people connected to the commercial industry and living in the communities at the centre of safety concerns have been "incredibly patient."

"The stories that I hear are troubling, that they not only are worried about their public safety, but they watch illegal vessels go out and illegal vessels come back."

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