A former federal fisheries minister has joined a Sea to Sky Corridor fisheries roundtable group in voicing concern about the potential impacts of changes to the Fisheries Act that have been tabled in the House of Commons.
In a strongly worded letter to local member of Parliament John Weston, the Sea to Sky Fisheries Roundtable - including representatives from the Squamish Nation, Streamkeepers and sport fishing groups as well as John Fraser, who served as fisheries minister in the Brian Mulroney government - is asking the federal government to separate budgetary and environmental provisions contained in the omnibus Bill C-38 so that proposed changes to fisheries-related legislation can be discussed in detail.
"We are immensely concerned with the significant changes proposed in the budget implementation act that we feel will degrade protections to fish and fish habitat," states the letter, (copied on page nine of today's Coast Reporter).
Dave Brown, co-chair of the Squamish-Lillooet Sportfish Advisory group and one of the letter's signatories, said the group feels strongly that the federal Conservatives are rushing the bill through the House without adequate discussion of its impacts.
"There are some changes being proposed very rapidly and we think more meaningful dialogue has to happen apart from the Budget Act," he said. "We'd like to see each piece be separated out and dealt with in due time."
Since the letter was sent, Brown has been in contact with Weston and received assurances that the West Vancouver - Sunshine Coast - Sea to Sky Country MP planned to present it to Fisheries Minister Keith Ashfield post-haste.
"We really feel John has done a lot of work on our behalf," Brown said. "We don't agree with what the government is doing, but he's really been a model MP as far as carrying our concerns forward."
The letter expresses concern about provisions that would allow federal officials to delegate responsibility for fisheries and pollution protection to the provinces and territories. It also goes into detail about the proposed rewording of the law surrounding the protection of fish habitat.
For example, whereas it's now illegal to disrupt or destroy fish habitat, the new law would change that wording to prohibit activities that cause "serious harm to fish that are part of a commercial, recreational or Aboriginal fishery, or to fish that support such a fishery."
Another proposed change that would allow the government to delegate to industry, developers or the provinces the right to authorize adverse effects on fish habitat "is akin to allowing the fox to guard the chicken coop," the letter states.
