We’re nearly a week into elver season.
The baby eel fishery on Maritime rivers has been plagued by shutdowns, poaching and illegal activity over the years.
The federal Fisheries department decided to open the season last weekend, with several changes.
A new app is now in place to track the catch, and a new quota plan gives more commercial catch to First Nations.
Stanley King with Atlantic Elver Fishery Ltd. says some of his quota was taken without compensation.
“First Nations now hold 53 percent of the fishery. We’re a shell of our former company, and other commercial license holders are feeling the same way. At this point, we’re trying to make ends meet,” said King.
King believes DFO needs an overhaul after the federal election, saying they’ve mismanaged the fishery.
He doesn’t believe the new regulations will change anything.
“We were only two days into the season, and we had two nets stolen. Unfortunately, we’re seeing a lot of the same things we have in previous years.”
The incident happened in Ingramport, where two nets worth over $4,000 were stolen, RCMP searched a property in Sipekne’katik but didn’t find the gear, they’re still investigating.
Elver nets stolen from a property in Ingramport. Photo: RCMP.
According to reports, the Millbrook First Nation will not take part in DFO’s elver regulations, and instead will fish their own moderate livelihood plan.
King says beyond that, technical issues with the app are popping up.
He says it’s proving to not be as reliable as a paper trail, but he’s hopeful the kinks can be worked out.
King notes the price of elvers has dropped dramatically in the past few years due to poaching and the number of black market fish.
The elver industry is exempt from the Chinese tariffs on Canadian seafood.
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