•. Province of Newfoundland FORTY -FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NEWFOUNDLAND Volume XLI Second Session Number 17 VERBATIM REPORT {Hansard) Speaker: Honourable Thomas Lush Wednesday [Preliminary Transcript] 4 April L990 The House met at 2:00 p.m . convincing evidence that major public policy decisions must be MR. SPEAKER takE!n to safeguard the pr·udent Oi"der, please! management of the Northern cod l"esource. Indeed. one of the strongest conclusions in the 11 Statements by Ministers Repor·t. is that failul~E:~ to tclkE! appropriate steps to reduce current J.evels of Fishing MR. SPEAKER : mortality tAiil1 rnost probably h•ad The han. the Minister of FishE!ries. to a significant continuing decline in the spalAming biomass. 11 MR. W. CARTER : Mr. Speaker, On March 30th, of The pan e 1 f u r thE' r r e c o rnrn e n d s . i n this past week, my Federal the strongest possible tr:H'ms. that counterpart, the han. Bernard the:~ guiding principle must bE• the:~ Valcourt, released the final imperative necessity for an report of the Harl~is Review PanE!l increasti:~ in thE! size of Lhe on Northern Cod. This Report, spawning population. By which was anxiously awaited by the implication, Mr. Speaker, fishing industry at large, acceptance oF the Pane1 1 s key addressed a lAJhole range of issues recommendation that, as a matter surrounding the management of thE! of urgency, the fishing mortaJ.ity largest groundfish stock in waters be rc:~duced to a fishing lTlOI"t.ality adjacent to our Province on which level of at least 0. 30 ilrllnediab~ly our fishing industry and economy and to the leve1 of 0. 20 at LhE! are critically dependent. Over earliest feasible date, means the past several years, thc:~re have furthel" reduc l:ions in thE~ Nol"thE·l~n been major conCE!rns raised · ovel" cod quota fi"Oin its exis l:ing level the health of the Northern cod of 190,260 tons. stock. It was in this context that the Harris Panel tAJas given a The report provides convincing broad mandate by the Government of evidc:~nce that: a reduct.ion in Lhc:­ Canada to acldi"es s a wide• rangE! of fishing rnol"tality is Cl"it.ica1 and issues relating ·to thti:~ managti:~ment that continuing to fish at current of this resource. Obviously, levels will not lead to Lhe conservation conce1"ns must be the desired goal of increasing Lhe overriding factor in the size:~ of the spalAming biomass. Ml". management of any given fish Speaker, the Report in question stock. In this context, the confirms many of thE! consel~val:i.on Government of Newfoundland and and fisher·ies managti:'rllE:~nt concer·ns Labrador had taken a special tAJhich the Pl"ovince has l"a".i.sE•d interest in the work of the Harris relative to the Northern cod Panel and hoJ.ds the view that the stock. In this conLext, the Panel 1 s final report provides a Province believes that it wou1d be solid framework in which totally inappropriate for both Governments, the fishing industry orders of GoveJ~nmE!I1L t:o ·ignor·e t:he and the public at large can focus strong conservation message which on those critical issues !"elating is conveyed in the Harris Report. to thti:~ managemen·t of the Northern cod stock. The conclusions There is little doubt, Mr. contained in the final repol"'t: of Speaker, that Further quota the Harris Panel provide reductions, tAJhich t.~Jould f1ot~.J ·Fr·om L1 Apl"il If. , 1990 VoJ. XLI No . 1 '7 rn acceptance of the key fishing industry and the Council's recommendations of the Report, advice will be given every t~.Ji.ll haue a major social and consideration by the Province in economic impact on the Prouince 1 s formulating its formal response to economy ouer the foreseeable the Harris Report. future. Howeuer, in the absence of these conseruation measures. we Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I t~.rish run the risk of contributing to a to indicate that the Report of the significant decline in the Ha1"ris l~eview Panel tAlill have exploitable and spawning biomass major implications for this of Northern cod which would Province and its fishing industry clearly not be in the longe1n term :in the yea1ns ahead. I, therE!fOI"E:!. interest of our economy, our call upon Uris hon. House l:o fishing industry, our people, and congratulate Dr . LE!sliE• Han·is and the resource itself. It is in his Panel on the complE!tion of a this light, Mr. SpE!akeln, that the solid, conservation-oriented Gouernment of Newfoundland and report. Labrador is particularly concerned over a principal conclusion in the MR. RIDEOUT : Report that "the population, the Mr. Speaker. biomass, the spawning population and the spawning biomass of MR . SPEAKER: NorthEH'n cod a1ne currently in The hon. the Leader oF l:.hE! decline and that the fishing Opposition . mortality rate is currently at the leuel of 0.45 or higher. 11 MR. RIDEOUT : Thank you, Min. Speaker. First of Gouernment • s initial inclination all let me thank the Minister on is that all 29 recommendations of behalf of the Members on this side the Harr·is Panel Report should be of the House for providing us with accepted in their entirety. I a copy of the statement a few will repeat, Mr . Speaker, minutes before he r t:~a d it in the GouernmE!nt • s initial inclination House. is that all 29 recommendations of the Han·is Panel RE!pOI"t should be Let ITIE! bE!gin, Mr. SpE!aker, by accepted in their entirety. repeating the line that the However, Gouernment is cognizant Minister repeated twice on page of the fact that all interest three. 1 G6vernment's initial groups shouJ.d bE! giuen the inclination is that aLl 29 opportunity to reuiew the report recommendations of the Harris in detaiJ. and make their uiews Report should be accepted in their known before the Federal entirety. • Now, Mr. Speaker. t.hat Government proceeds with is the Government's inclination. implementation of the Report's It: is not yet the Government's recommendations. It is for this posil7.ion, it :is not yEd: l.. hE! reason that: the Province has asked Gouernrnent's fir·rn position . 1 do that the NeiAJf ou ndland and Labrador hope that it will be. I can Fisheries Advisory Council m•:!Ed: at understand that there should the earliest possible date and obviously be consultation . This present its views to Government on is a very imporl:ant: docurnenl:: For the final report of the Harris the future of thousands of Panel. The Counci]. is made up of NetAJfoundlanders and hunclr·eds of a cross-section of thE! Pr·ouince • s communities in this Province, Ml". L2 April 4, 1.990 Vol XLI No . 1 '1 R2 a Speaker. effort be dramatically irnproVE!d and increased, and at the same Let us be clear exactly what we time it will be absolutely are talking about, Mr. Speaker. necessary that surveillance be To reduce the fishing mortality increased as wel1. SornE!thing has immediately to 0. 30 as Dr. Harr·is to be done to respond to the recommends we do immediately, it problem of seals. The means that we immediately move announcement made by the Minister from a TAC (total allowable catch) of assistance for harvesting, both of 199,260 tons, as is the case Ministers, I guess, is a welcome today, to a total allowable catch announcement but there has to be of 1'78,000 tons immediately. That something more than that and is what 0. 30 means. And to moVE! hopefully it will be a positive ·to Dr. Harris's recommended level approach in the sense ·that l:hore at the earliest feasible date, as will be economic reality to the he puts it in his report, of 0.20 harvesting of the seal herd and means that lAJe as quickly as bringing it into proportion with possible move to a total allowable the rest of the ecosystem. catch of 125,000 tons. So it must be clearly understood, Mr. Jurisdiction, Mr. Speaker, is Speaker, just in case 0.30 is not addressed in the Harris Report. or 0.20 is not that what it Dr. Harris makes some very actually means is immediately specific recommendations about going from 199,000 tons to 1'78,000 what Canada must do to ensure. that tons, and then as quickly as Canada, as quickly as possible, possible thereafter to a TAC o~ obtains the ability to be able to 125,000 tons in the effort to save manage the trans boundry stock, this stock so that the biomass particularly as it relates to l:.he will regenerate and rebuild and Nose and Tail of the Bank. One hopefully get back to levels, I other area, Mr. Speaker, in the believe as Dr. Harris says, where Harris Report that must be we can have sustainable total addressed, not only by the allowable catches of about 300,000 GovernrnE!nt of Canada, but must be tons or so a year which has been, addressed on an urgent basis by you know, lAdth some variance the the Government of Newfoundland and figure that most people believe Labrador, and that, Mr. Speaker, can be sustained. is harvesting technology. Dr. Harris, as the Minister knows and Mr. Speaker, there are a number of as the Government knows, has madE! other very significant some significant recornmendations recommendations in the Harris as to mesh size, harvesting Report that the Minister has not technology, a better conservation chosen to respond to yet.