Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Assoc.

Approved July 6, 2010
Revised August 9th, 2010

This Conservation Harvesting Plan (CHP) applies to all Prince Edward Island fixed gear licence holders fishing Atlantic Halibut in NAFO Divisions 4RST and sub-division 3Pn with vessels less than 19.812 metres (65 feet) in overall length from May 15, 2010 to May 14, 2011.
When fishing in a particular area, the conservation harvesting plan for that area will apply. It is to be noted that this conservation harvesting plan is subject to change following ministerial decisions or annual review.
Directed fishing for any other groundfish species will require a separate harvesting plan.
The conservation measures during the fishery are as follows:

1. Protection of spawning fish and concentration of juveniles
The protection of fish during the spawning period and areas where there are concentrations of juveniles is a priority that the department and the industry consider very important for the reconstruction of the Cod stock in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The following conservation measures will apply:
 Closure of all groundfish fisheries from April 1st to June 23rd in part of the NAFO Division 4R offshore from St. Georges Bay and Port au Port Bay.
 Closure by variation order of all groundfish fisheries from January 1st to December 31st in part of sub division 4T3 know as Miscou Bank.
 Permanent closure of all groundfish fisheries from January 1st to December 31st in sub division 4T5 known as a juvenile area.

2. Participants
For the purposes of this Conservation Harvesting Plan, fishers who belong to the Prince Edward Island fixed gear fleet are fishers having their home port in the province of Prince Edward Island using Vessel Class A-68.

3. Allocation
The Atlantic Halibut allocation for the Prince Edward Island fixed gear fleet will be 23.2 metric tonnes in total for 2010 (6.1 t traditional plus a 17.1 t temporary re-allocation from the mobile fleet sectors). Any overrun of this allocation will be taken on a one-to-one basis from the 2011 allocation of Atlantic Halibut assigned to this fleet.

4. Fishing gear
 Longline only
i. Minimum hook size: opening must be equal to or greater than 15.4 mm.
ii. Minimum hook spacing of three (3) fathoms when fishing in NAFO Division 4R or sub-Division 3Pn
iii. Maximum number of hooks:600

5. By-Catch Limits
By-catch is defined as the weight of a by-catch species divided by the weight of the directed species, in this case, Atlantic Halibut. The by-catch limits of groundfish while directing for Atlantic Halibut are as follows:

Cod Maximum daily limit of 45.35 kg (100 lbs) or 30% whichever is greater
White Hake Maximum daily limit of 10%
Sharks Maximum daily limit of the lesser of 500 kg or 10% of weight on board the vessel providing the vessel has a condition of license authorizing by-catch of sharks.
Other species of groundfish in 4RST 25%
Cod by-catch will be maintained at a strict minimum level. If daily by-catch limits are exceeded, the fishery may be closed.

6. Fishing effort
Given the limited amount of Atlantic Halibut available, it is recognized that the Prince Edward Island fixed gear fleet will have to limit its fishing effort. Limits on fishing can take several forms, such as:
 The number of boats on the water
 The duration of the fishery, or
 The amount of fishing gear used.

7. Small Fish Protocol
The small fish protocol that will apply:
a. Cod 43 cm
b. American Plaice 30 cm
c. Witch Flounder 30 cm
d. White Hake 45 cm
e. Winter Flounder /Yellowtail Flounder 25 cm
f. Atlantic Halibut 85 cm
g. Greenland Halibut 44 cm
h. Redfish 22 cm
Areas will be closed for specified fleet sectors when the number of undersized fish reaches or exceeds 15% of the catch of any of the above species. Where there is a requirement by condition of licence to release undersized fish to the water, it will not be counted within the small fish protocol.

8. Logbook
Logbooks are mandatory for all vessels.

9. Dockside Monitoring
Dockside Monitoring Program (DMP) will apply at 100%.

10. Observer Coverage
a) 4RS, 3Pn and 4T:
Industry-funded at-sea observer coverage at a minimum of 10% will apply for vessels less than 45 feet.
Fishers are required to contact the DFO Vessel Hail-Out System at 1-800-561-2467, at least 10 hours before leaving on each fishing trip (mandatory hail-out).
The PEIFA has requested that fishers pre-register with their Association’s office before 12 p.m. (noon) on August 6th, 2010, in order to better define the actual anticipated effort in this fishery. A conference call with members of the PEI Fixed Gear Advisory Committee is scheduled for the afternoon of August 6th, 2010, to finalize effort controls.

11. Catch monitoring and Test fishery
Small fish and by-catch closures will be of a minimum duration of 10 days. The cost of conducting all test fisheries must be borne by industry. If a fishery is closed, it will not re-open unless DFO feels that it can be effectively monitored and controlled. If any particular fishery is closed twice during the year because of high levels of small fish or incidental catch, the fishery may remain closed for the remainder of the year.

12. Fishing seasons
The following seasons will be in effect during the year. However, the actual opening dates for the Prince Edward Island geographical fleet will be from August 31, 2010 at 6:00 a.m. ADT until 6:00 p.m. ADT the same day. Adjustments to this period maybe possible given the actual effort in the fishery and the abundance of Atlantic Halibut during this fishery. Any unused quota may be made available to this fleet before May 14th, 2011, pending approval of an amended CHP.

4T1  May 15, to December 31st
4T2 (a)    May 15, to December 31st
4T2 (b)    May 15, to December 31st
4T3 (a)    May 15, to December 31st, except Miscou bank
4T3 (b)    May 15, to December 31st, except Miscou bank
4T4  May 15, to December 31st
4T5  No directed fishery
4T6  No directed fishery
4T7  No directed fishery
4T8  No directed fishery
4T9 (a+b)  May 15, to December 31st

The industry’s choice to concentrate the fishing of the quota in a single fishing period is part of a management approach aimed at not exceeding the quota allocated. However, this initiative involves the risk of not reaching the quota. A mechanism must therefore be provided to get closer to this quota.
If, after the prescribed fishing period, the total catch is over 90% of the quota, the objective will be considered to have been reached and the fishery will not reopen. If, after the prescribed period, the 90% threshold has not been harvested, the industry and the department will consider a reduced period of fishing to reach the objective.

13. Other Management Measures
The Department will continue to monitor the level of dumping and discarding of groundfish at sea. An industry funded sampling program is already in place to collect data to monitor small fish and by-catch. The sampling program will further be enhanced to include the collection of additional data to monitor discard of groundfish. If a fleet sector or an individual is suspected of dumping and discarding groundfish at sea, the industry funded at-sea observer coverage may be increased up to 100%.
The overrun of quotas is a problem that needs to be addressed. To do so, the Department has agreed to implement quota reconciliation starting with the 2010 season. Any fleet quota overruns in the present season (2010) will be deducted on a one-to-one ratio from the following season's quota (2011).

14. Additional considerations
Pursuant to the Species at Risk Act (SARA), no person shall kill, harm, harass, capture, take, possess, collect, buy, sell or trade an individual or any part or derivate of a wildlife species designated as extirpated, endangered or threatened.
At the time this Management Plan is promulgated, the Atlantic species targeted by these measures are the following ones: Spotted Wolfish (threatened), Northern Wolfish (threatened), Leatherback Turtle (endangered) and Atlantic Walrus (Northwest Atlantic population) (extirpated). New species could be added to the SARA within the year.
All by-catches of species identified above must be returned to the water and released in the exact capture location and, if the fish is still alive, with as little harm as possible. The information related to species at risk shall be collected for each fishing trip where such a species at risk shall be collected for each fishing trip where such a species is caught. This information must be entered into the logbook and reported to Fisheries and Oceans Canada immediately after the fishing trip.