Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Assoc.

“***UPDATED WHALE CLOSURES***

There has been a new closure announced by DFO which could affect the halibut fishery and therefore the PEIFA wanted to share. Any areas on the map with red diagonal lines will close to unattended gear at 5:00 pm on July 26^th.

As per the announcement: The PEI halibut fishery use longline gear and it is considered ‘tended’ meaning you are close to your lines. In the DFO Notice it states: ‘Closures will also be in effect for Atlantic halibut (fixed gear) when gear is left unattended’. This means that PEI fishers fishing in the black or red boxes (meaning NARW closed grids) cannot leave their lines unattended, therefore can’t leave them overnight without supervising them. They are allowed to fish halibut in these areas as long as they are ‘tending’ their lines.

If you have any further questions, you can contact DFO directly or your local fisheries officer for more info. The latest grid closures and re-openings are posted to the DFO website: https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/commercial-commerciale/atl-arc/narw-bnan/index-eng.html