Fishery Notice

Closes 19:00 hours June 5, 2017 in Subareas 13-19, 13-42, 13-43, 16-18, 17-3, 
27-10, and the remainder of 29-3 and 29-5

Also closes 19:00 hours June 5, 2017 in that portion of Subarea 17-11 lying 
East of a line starting at a point on Merry Island at 49o28.060'N and 
123o54.951'W, then Southerly to a point on Vancouver Island at Icarus Point at 
49o15.150'N and 124o02.220'W. This effectively closes Subarea 17-11 East of 
Winchelsea Islands. 

Notice: Subareas 13-12, 13-13, 13-16, 13-17, 15-1, 15-2, 15-3, 15-6, 16-5 to 16-
10, 16-14, 16-15, 23-1 to 23-11 (Area 23), 27-7, and 27-8 are subject to short 
notice closure for 19:00 hours Thursday June 8, 2017 following additional 
review of spawner index sampling. Results will be reviewed and announced on 
Monday June 5 by 4:00 pm.

Fishery continues 19:00 hours June 5, 2017 until further notice for all species 
of shrimp, including prawns, by trap gear, in the following areas:

Area 11
Subareas 12-1 to 12-22, 12-24 to 12-28, 12-39, 12-41, 12-42 except for the 
Robson Bight - Michael Bigg Ecological Reserve closure area (Section 3.3.5 of 
the Commercial Harvest Plan) 
Area 13-1 to 13-18 and 13-20 to 13-41
Subareas 14-3 to 14-15 except for the Glass Sponge Reef Closures off Parksville 
and Achilles Bank (Section 3.3.8 of the Commercial Harvest Plan)
Subareas 15-1 to 15-3 and 15-6
Subareas 16-2 to 16-10, 16-14, 16-15 and 16-19 to 16-22 - Note Special 
Management Area in Salmon and Sechelt Inlets - Subareas 16-5 to 16-8 where 
reduced trap and string limits apply.
Subareas 17-1, 17-2, 17-4, 17-5, 17-7, 17-8, 17-9, 17-12 to 17-21, that portion 
of Subarea 17-10 except within 2 nautical miles of Thrasher Rock and that 
portion of Subarea 17-11 lying West of a line starting at a point on Merry 
Island at 49o28.060'N and 123o54.951'W, then Southerly to a point on Vancouver 
Island at Icarus Point at 49o15.150'N and 124o02.220'W, and except for the 
Glass Sponge Reef Closure off Entrance Island (Section 3.3.11 of the Commercial 
Harvest Plan) 
Area 18 except for the Satellite Channel Ecological Reserve closure area 
(Section 3.3.13 of the Commercial Harvest Plan) and the Glass Sponge Reef 
Closures around the Outer Gulf Islands (Section 3.3.14 of the Commercial 
Harvest Plan)
Area 19 - Note advisory for Sponge Reefs in Section 3.3.15 of the Commercial 
Harvest Plan in waters less than 40 m depth in Saanich Inlet and "VENUS" 
scientific array outside of Pat Bay at the location described in Section 3.3.16 
of the Commercial Harvest Plan. Note Special Management Area in Saanich Inlet - 
Subareas 19-7 to 19-12 where reduced trap and string limits apply.
Subareas 20-1 to 20-5 - Note moorage buoy advisory on Constance Bank at 
48º18.00 N and 123º 22.50 W in 117 meters in Section 3.3.19 of the Commercial 
Harvest Plan.
Areas 21 and 22
Area 23 except for the Pacific Rim National Park, Broken Group Islands closure 
area (Section 3.3.22 of the Commercial Harvest Plan); Note Neptune Project 
Advisory in Section 3.3.24 of the Commercial Harvest Plan; Note Special 
Management Area in Alberni Inlet - Subareas 23-1 to 23-3 where reduced trap and 
string limits apply.
Area 24
Subareas 25-1 to 25-12, 25-15 and 25-16 - Note advisory for Sponge Reefs in 
Section 3.3.25 of the Commercial Harvest Plan in Tahsis Narrows in the vicinity 
of Mozino Point in waters less than 80 meters depth.
Subareas 26-1 to 26-3 and 26-6 to 26-11
Subareas 27-1 to 27-9, and 27-11 
Subareas 29-6, 29-7, 29-9, 29-10 and that portion of Subarea 29-4 except within 
2 nautical miles of Thrasher Rock and except for the Glass Sponge Reef Closures 
at McCall Bank, Halibut Bank, Passage Island, Foreslope Hills, and Outer Gulf 
Islands (Section 3.3.29 of the Commercial Harvest Plan).
Areas 111, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126, and 127

Subareas are described in the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations. 

Variation Order Number 2017-305
      

Note: 
This notice applies to South Coast and Fraser River Areas 11 to 29 and Offshore 
Areas 111, 121, and 123 to 127 inclusive.  Please refer to the North Coast 
notice for Areas 1 to 10, 101 to 110, 130, and 142.

On the first day of the fishery, May 11, 2017, harvesters will be permitted to 
set their gear and haul and reset it once only, provided they do so by 19:00 
hours.

Effective May 12, 2017, hauling of prawn and shrimp by trap gear, line and 
buoys is permitted only once per day as a condition of licence in all areas of 
the coast. This is referred to as single hauling. 

In all areas, after opening day, all setting and hauling of prawn and shrimp 
traps will be permitted only between 07:00 hours (7:00 am) and 19:00 hours 
(7:00 pm) and hauling of traps will be permitted only once per day.

All in season area closures will be implemented at 19:00 hours Mondays or 
Thursdays unless otherwise announced. 

Vessel masters are advised to carefully consider stability and weather 
conditions when loading their vessels and packing gear. 

J.O. Thomas is the service company selected by industry to provide: trap tags, 
logbooks, hail out, set/haul data, and the in season at-sea observer program.  
The hail out number is 1-866-930-4000.
 
Every person working on a vessel that is fishing under a communal commercial 
licence must be designated by the First Nation that holds the licence. The 
designation must be made in writing and include the person's name and reference 
the communal commercial licence. The designation must be carried on-board and 
be produced on request of any Fishery Officer. First Nations licence holders 
interested in obtaining an example template to use to designate their 
harvesters may contact a DFO Resource Manager. 

All vessels must have a DFO-approved vessel monitoring system reporting vessel 
location every 15 minutes. 

Vessel masters are reminded that the Conditions of Licence require the string 
location and the haul time to be recorded in the harvest logbook "Time of Haul" 
column within ½ hour of hauling, and before the next string is hauled.   

The minimum size limit for prawns is 33 mm measured as carapace length. The 
minimum size for tailed prawns is 22 mm telson length.
  
Traps must be sorted and undersized prawns released as each trap comes on board.

All berried prawns must be released.

A total of 300 traps on 6 strings may be fished or 500 traps on 10 strings 
where traps have been reallocated prior to licencing. These trap and string 
limits do not apply in the Special Management Areas. 
    
Trap and string limits are reduced in Special Management Areas in: Howe Sound 
and Indian Arm (Subareas 28-1 to 28-5 and 28-11 to 28-14); Alberni Inlet 
(Subareas 23-1 to 23-3); Salmon / Sechelt Inlets (Subareas 16 -5 to 16-08); and 
Saanich Inlet (Subareas 19-7 to 19-12). In these areas, a total of 150 traps on 
3 strings may be fished or 250 traps on 5 strings where traps have been 
reallocated prior to licencing.

All traps shall contain a biodegradable escape mechanism ("rot cord") to allow 
bycatch to escape in event traps are lost.

The Sooke Harbour and Basin Coonstripe shrimp fishery in Subareas 20-6 and 20-7 
is anticipated to open 12:00 hours November 01, 2017. Fishers will be limited 
to 50 traps as a condition of licence. This opening will be confirmed by a 
Fishery Notice in late October. 

All "W" and "FW" licence eligibility holders other than those with zero trap 
allocations due to transfer may fish and report octopus.  All harvesters are 
required to accurately report information about the octopus catch. Closures to 
the harvest of octopus are described in the Commercial Harvest Plan.

No prawns or shrimp that are not permitted to be retained under the authority 
of the commercial or communal commercial licence shall be on board the licenced 
vessel. 

All frozen and fresh product on board must be in a condition that it can be 
readily measured and identified by species. Freezing of whole or tailed product 
in solid blocks or tubs of ice will require that the harvester provide randomly 
selected samples to be thawed for inspection by Fishery Officers.

Solid-sided traps are not permitted.
  
Refer to the 2017/18 Prawn and Shrimp by Trap Integrated Fisheries Management 
Plan for the detailed commercial harvest plan, closure area descriptions, 
Special Management Area (SMA) restrictions and contact numbers for further 
information or clarification. 


FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Laurie Convey 250-756-7233
David Fogtmann 250-339-3799
Mike Kattilakoski 250-756-7315
Anna Magera 604-916-6743

Fisheries & Oceans Operations Center - FN0498
Sent June 2, 2017 at 1437

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Printed from the Pacific Region web site on July 7, 2024 at 0119