most often as traditional Haida sites for gathering seagull eggs and Ancient murrelets and their eggs. There are observations that seabird numbers have declined, especially over the last 30 years: … they used to be real busy in the fifties and the sixties and I think … even the seventies, but I think in the eighties is when they really started to go down, a lot of them. I think something else I mentioned up here was going down “We used to go down to Limestone in the eighties also. But I think that’s the same story here, and get the night birds, sk’in xaana because of all the food chain disappearing and that’s they were called.” (Herbie Jones, reflected in the population also. (Captain Gold, Mar. 2009) Mar. 2007) Due to conservation concerns, a chapter on seabirds is included in Volume 3: Focal Species Summary. Proposed Windfarm During both the HMTK interviews and the community verification sessions, participants discussed concerns around the potential impacts of an energy generating windfarm proposed for Hecate Strait. The NaiKun Offshore Wind Energy Project could mean the installation of up to 110 wind turbines southeast of Rose Spit, with connections to the mainland near Prince Rupert and to Haida Gwaii via submarine cables.4 There is the potential for conflict between the east coast crab fishery and the proposed location of the development. … those windmills they’re putting up out off of Rose Spit there… I feel … it’s going to really ruin the crab fishing grounds for the crab fishermens, because … the vibration from the windmill… goes through the pipe and it goes down to the cement block and makes a lot of noise underwater, eh? And that’s going to scare all the crabs away. Because they’re not used to noises like that. Because there’s gonna be so many of them, it’s going to be pretty noisy. I feel it’s… kind of going to ruin the fishing industry, especially for the crab fishermens. … Fishing is bad enough as it is and when they bring that up there it’s going to really ruin … even for food fishing … it’s going to be hard to get fish. (Willie Russ Jr., Mar. 2009) Figure 25 on the following page shows the Dungeness crab observations and harvesting areas documented for the Hecate North seascape unit during the study, in relation to the proposed windfarm site. During the Old Massett verification sessions, it was noted that the area of the proposed development is also an Ancient murrelet and fur seal migration route, as well as habitat for killer whales and humpback whales (Jun. 2010). 4 http://www.naikun.ca Volume 2. 66 Figure 25: Map showing Dungeness crab observations and harvesting areas and the proposed windfarm. Groundfish Populations Many species of groundfish were noted throughout the seascape unit. These are shown in the map in Figure 26 on the following page). Few concerns were raised about groundfish in the interviews but groundfish are known to be an important ecosystem component of this seascape unit that are caught in several major commercial fisheries. Volume 2. 67 Figure 26: Groundfish observations and harvesting areas documented for Hecate North and South. Volume 2. 68 Issues Summary and Stewardship Suggestions While a number of salmon conservation issues were raised for this seascape unit, there were few suggestions as how to mitigate the declines that are being witnessed. In regards to herring populations, it is felt that tighter restrictions over some commercial fisheries are needed in order to let stocks recover further. Some Haidas favour the SOK fisheries which for the most part release the fish unharmed. … I see the herring coming back and … it’s still gotta be left alone … *as far as the+ commercial [fishery+ goes, yeah, that’s 100% mortality there. With this, you know, herring and the roe on kelp there, they’re released after. Like it’s not 100% mortality and not every one spawns when you pond them up too. Like you only get … probably about 30 or 40% of them that’ll spawn and then when you go to release them they take off and go let go somewhere else, so… our ponds are designed for like 40, 50, up to 70 tons. But with those other guys that are doing it there, their ponds there, they plug about 100 and something tons in there, eh? (Conrad Collinson, Oct. 2008) A suggestion for the windfarm issue is that consultations with crab fishermen could help to locate the proposed development in a way that would impact the crabs less. … Dungeness crab is a spot fishery. People think you could throw pots out wherever, but it’s not the case … This area here is clay; you don’t get crabs there. Now from here… the beach out six and a half miles, this whole area is all… starfish; you don’t catch crab here … And then you can set those windmills – that they want to put up on the inside – where it will have no affect on this, it’s a little deeper, but not that much more. And they could set them up all along here, all the way down, because this is all clay here too … they want to put it out here… there’s the crab fishermen, and we’re saying no… I’m going to make recommendation they put it here. And that won’t affect the crab fishermen. (Robin Brown, Apr. 2007) There was also a suggestion during the Old Massett verification sessions that the windfarm should be restricted to a 6.5 mile range of the beach (Jun. 2010). Some other specific stewardship suggestions for the Hecate North area are: Sewell Inlet and Selwyn Inlet need some level of protection for traditional herring fisheries (e.g. restrict to only Haida k’aaw use permitted in certain areas) Copper Bay should be protected for Haida use and as an important rearing area for fish Areas with good prawn and halibut fishing (e.g. “ … down around somewhere like Cumshewa, Copper Bay) should be protected for Haida use Cumshewa Inlet for prawns … that’s Selwyn Inlet to Burnaby Strait should be protected for one of the ones that most people Haida sockeye food fisheries can get to that’s nice and close, not Ocean ranching of salmon should be considered at Pallant like Logan and Richardson and stuff Creek hatchery like that… where people can’t make Rich areas around Skedans need protection: it all that way. But it’s way easier for “Around the Skedans area; that seems that rockfish aren’t people to make it here than it is to as abundant as elsewhere and it’s so close to home. That make it way down there, so if this shouldn’t be targeted by sports fishermen. There isn’t way closed to commercial fishing, that many sports fishermen down there but at the rate of that would give a lot more growth they’re going to overflow into all the good fishing opportunity for people to fish spots on the islands.” (Percy Williams, Oct. 2008) prawns.” (Wally Pelton, Oct. 2008) Volume 2. 69 5. Gwaii Haanas Summary of identified species and features: Marine and Maritime Species: Salmon (coho, sockeye, spring, pink and chum), herring, smelt, halibut, lingcod, black cod, Pacific cod, rockfish (yelloweye, quillback, China, cabezon, kelp greenlings, canary, tiger, Bocaccio, redbanded, black, dusky, yellowtail), ocean perch, dogfish, flounder (arrowtooth, starry), rock sole, Pacific sanddab, skate (longnose, big), clams (butter, littleneck, horse, geoduck), cockles, rock scallops, abalone, sea urchins (green, red), mussels, sea cucumber, chitons, octopus, squid, crab (Dungeness, red rock, box), shrimp, prawn, rock oysters, gooseneck barnacles, limpits, red turban snails, purple olive snails, seagull eggs, Ancient murrelets, ducks, wild sea asparagus, seaweed (dulse, laver, kelp), seals, whale (species unknown), sea otter, river otter, pine marten, deer Other Species/Topics of Note: Forage fish areas (needlefish, herring); nesting seabirds; sea lion and seal rookeries, fur seals; killer whales, gray whales, sperm whales, minke whales, humpbacks, blue whales, porpoises (Dall and harbour), Pacific white-sided dolphin; eel grass areas; incidental reports of sunfish, sea otter, leatherback turtle, blue shark Traditional Settlements, Villages, Camps: Nang Sdins [Ninstints], Rose Harbour, GawGaay.ya [Gowgaia/Big Bay], T’aanuu [Tanu], K’iid [Burnaby Narrows], Windy Bay, Shuttle Island, Lyell Island, Hutton Inlet, Swan Bay, Alder Island, Poole Inlet, Skaat Harbour, House Island, Hotspring Island, Section Cove, Faraday Island, Murchison Island, Atli Inlet, Echo Bay, Lockeport, Slim Inlet, Benjamin Point, Ikeda Harbour, Kunghit Cultural/Historical: Rose Harbour – whaling station; Helmet Island and Flower Pot Island have remains of Haida forts on them; gold mine on Shuttle Island; cannery/saltery locations: Jedway, Lockeport, Bag Harbour; trails to west coast from Hutton Inlet, Skaat Harbour and George Bay Other: Good anchorages – Howe Bay, Crescent Inlet; The Water Hole – fresh water source at Shuttle Island used by commercial fishermen; named fishing sites – Carpenter Bay Spot; story locations – Flatrock Island, southern tip of Kunghit; cave on Huxley Island where ancient grizzly jaw bone was found Haida Activities “Rose Inlet, Carpenter Bay, Collison Bay, Ikeda, Skincuttle, Jedway—an abundance of food everywhere, wherever you go... clams, rock scallops, k’aaw in season, red cod, lingcod, halibut, spring salmon, coho—everything down there. In season, most of it, but the shellfish you can get pretty well all year-round…” (Percy Williams, Oct. 2008) Seasonal movement patterns and activities throughout seascape unit Gwaii Haanas is an extremely rich marine area. Many locations within this seascape unit are important to Haidas for both food and commercial harvests, and fisheries span a wide variety of fish and shellfish species.