DFO has shut down a small section of the Chilliwack/Vedder River to recreational salmon fishing to protect co-migrating spawning Cultus Lake sockeye.
The closed section is roughly 200 metres above the Vedder Bridge, to 200 metres below it.
“Due to current concerns around the impacts of observed non-compliance activities in portions of the Chilliwack/Vedder River, the Department (of Fisheries and Oceans Canada) is implementing the following boundary change to offer protection to co-migrating sockeye salmon,” reads the July 23 fishery notice.
The closure is on one of the most heavily fished sections on the most heavily fished river systems in the Lower Mainland.
Nathan Bootsma, chair of the Fraser River Sportfishing Alliance said their members are concerned there wasn’t proper consultation, or communication with affected stakeholders before DFO went ahead with the closure.
“Let’s beef up enforcement if illegal fishing practices are the problem. Because the closure will just push the law-breakers into places that are even harder for DFO to enforce,” Bootsma said.
“If they had just kept that part of the river open, and put fishery officers at the bridge, they could have both educated, and handed out fines.”
There was a last-minute conference call DFO held to consult stakeholders, which none of their members could jump on.
In the wake of that call, they had many unanswered questions about what precipitated the closure. Were there sockeye being harvested? How many? Were there tickets being handed out for illegal fishing?
“Maybe there was lots of evidence of illegal fishing of sockeye. I don’t know. We weren’t given the evidence,” Bootsma said.
“The concern for Cultus sockeye is a legitimate concern. The problem is those sockeye are not in the river now, and won’t be until later.”
With the ongoing drought, the river levels are extremely low, which also is putting incredible pressure on returning fish. There had been a retention fishery for chinook on the Chilliwack prior to the closure.
“A closure should be the last resort. Not the first action they take,” Bootsma added.
RELATED: ‘Unprecedented’ action to save Fraser chinook
More details in the DFO notice
Do you have something to add to this story, or a news tip? Email:
jennifer.feinberg@theprogress.com
@CHWKjourno
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
