Vol. 132, No. 23 — November 11, 1998

Registration
SOR/98-545 29 October, 1998

FISHERIES ACT

Regulations Amending the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996

P.C. 1998-1928 29 October, 1998

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, pursuant to section 43 (see footnote a) of the Fisheries Act, hereby makes the annexed Regulations Amending the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996.

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE BRITISH COLUMBIA SPORT FISHING REGULATIONS, 1996

AMENDMENTS

1. The definition "tidal waters" in subsection 2(1) of the English version of the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996 (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:

"tidal waters" means the waters of the Areas set out in Schedule II to the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations. (eaux à marée)

2. Paragraph 6(1)(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(b) for white sturgeon.

3. The portion of item 9 of the table to section 17 of the Regulations in column II (see footnote 2) is replaced by the following:

Item	Column II Fee ($)
9.	31.00

4. Section 22 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

22. Where a licence holder catches and retains a lingcod or a chinook salmon, the licence holder shall immediately record the catch in ink on the licence.

5. The portion of item 15 of Schedule V to the Regulations in column II is replaced by the following:

Item	Column I Species	Column II Daily Quota
15.	Shrimp	5 kg in the shell or 2.5 kg with the head and the thorax removed

6. Item 7 of Schedule VIII to the Regulations is repealed.

7. Item 20 of Schedule VIII to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Item	Column I Provision of Regulations	Column II Offence	Column III Fine ($)
20.	13(2)	Possess more than 3 halibut	100, plus 50 per fish in excess of 3 up to a maximum of 1,000

COMING INTO FORCE

8. These Regulations come into force on October 29, 1998.

REGULATORY IMPACT
ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Description

These amendments to the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996, include: a repeal of the prohibition on fishing for halibut with more than one line; a reduction in the fee for a five-day non-resident sport fishing licence; a change in the requirement to record salmon on a sport fishing licence; and an amendment to the daily quota for shrimp.

The definition of "tidal waters" is being amended in the English version only, to correct a reference to the Pacific Fishery Management Areas Regulations.

The prohibition against any person angling with more than one fishing line for halibut is being lifted, because it has not been effective in managing effort in the halibut fishery. Anglers fishing for other species, such as salmon, can use more than one fishing line, and they often incidentally catch halibut with their gear. In such cases, it is difficult for Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) enforcement staff to prove that anglers intended to catch halibut using more than one fishing line and to enforce the Regulation. In consequence of this amendment, the offence of fishing for halibut with more than one line is also being removed from Schedule VIII.

The licence fee for a five-day non-resident sport fishing licence is being reduced from $36 to $31. Previously, the cost of a five-day licence was greater than the cost of two one-day licences and one three-day licence combined. This anomaly resulted in the sale of multiple licences to one fisher for a single five-day trip and additional costs to DFO for payment of commissions to licence vendors.

This amendment also corrects an error in the Regulations by requiring that only catches of chinook salmon, and not all catches of salmon, be recorded on the licence. Only chinook salmon has an annual limit and thus it is the only species of salmon that needs to be recorded on the sport fishing licence.

Schedule VIII is being further amended to accurately reflect the wording of subsection 13(2), which is referred to in item 20. In accordance with that subsection, the offence should be for possessing more than 3 halibut, not for possessing more than the daily quota.

The description of the daily quota for partly shelled shrimp is being amended to read "2.5 kg with the head and the thorax removed". The daily quota for shrimp in the shell remains unchanged at 5 kg per day. Previously, the daily quota for shrimp with the shell removed was 2 kg. However, the expression "shell removed" was unclear. Initially, it was intended to mean that the head and the thorax would be removed, which would leave the edible portion of the tail or abdomen as the portion to be weighed for purposes of the daily quota. The abdomen, however, is also covered by a portion of the exoskeleton or cuticle, which is considered a type of "shell" and which is not removed before the shrimp is processed for consumption. Fishers argued that shrimps with heads off were still in the shell, and thus should be considered for the higher daily quota of 5 kg rather than 2 kg.

Alternatives

There are no alternatives to a regulatory amendment for correcting anomalies or errors in the Regulations.

Benefits and Costs

Benefits

The removal of the restrictions of one line when fishing for halibut, the amendment to the description of the daily limit for shrimp and the amendment to the recording requirement for salmon will facilitate enforcement of the Regulations.

The reduction in the licence fee for a five-day non-resident sport fishing licence will eliminate the incentive for vendors to sell, and fishers to purchase, multiple shorter term licences for a single trip. The benefit is twofold. First, DFO costs for vendor commissions will drop by approximately $7,000. Second, DFO will hold more accurate statistics on the number of sport fishers in British Columbia.

Costs

There are no costs to the amendments respecting halibut, shrimp and chinook salmon.

It is estimated that there may be a loss of $25,000 in licence revenue from the decrease in the cost of a five-day licence. With reduced costs in vendor commissions, the net effect of the amendment to the Regulation may be $18,000 or less in lost revenue.

Consultation

The amendments have been discussed with and approved by the Sport Fishing Advisory Board (SFAB). The SFAB represents the concerns of sport fishers and the sport fishing industry in making recommendations to DFO and the Province of British Columbia on matters affecting sport fishers. No adverse reaction is anticipated from the sport fishing community.

This Regulation was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on August 1, 1998 and no comments were received.

Contact

Terry Gjernes
A/Chief, Recreational Fisheries Division
Operations Branch
Department of Fisheries and Oceans
300-555 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6B 5G3
Telephone: (604) 666-3271
FAX: (604) 666-7369

Footnote a

S.C. 1991, c. 1, s. 12

Footnote 1

SOR/96-137

Footnote 2

SOR/96-138

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