NLIS 9
November 29, 2005
(Fisheries and Aquaculture)
Not listing cod as endangered
right decision
Tom Rideout, Minister of Fisheries and
Aquaculture, today said the federal government�s recommendation not to add
Atlantic cod to the Species at Risk Act (SARA) legal list is the right decision.
Minister Rideout said: �This recommendation is welcome news for the province and
is consistent with the position put forward by our government to the Department
of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO). The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has
been strongly against the listing of cod stocks around Newfoundland and Labrador
under SARA from the beginning, and, with a strong endorsement from both the
fishing industry and the general public, we have been pressing the federal
government to not list it.�
On May 2, 2003, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC)
released the results of its assessment of Atlantic cod and recommended listing
the Newfoundland Shelf Population (2GH, 2J3KL, 3NO) as endangered, and the
Laurentian North Population (3Ps, 3Pn4RS) as threatened under SARA. The
recommendation not to add Atlantic cod was announced yesterday, and a final
decision will be made by the federal Cabinet by April 2006.
The minister added that COSEWIC failed to consider some important information
when making its assessments.
�We noted some problems with the assessments and recommendations from COSEWIC,�
said Minister Rideout. �The committee made no effort to gather community
knowledge from key stakeholders in the fishing industry. Furthermore, at the
time of the assessment by COSEWIC, the cod population in 3Ps and 3Pn4RS had in
excess of 100,000 metric tonnes of spawning stock biomass and supported a 15,000
metric tonne fishery along the south coast. Considering these numbers, surely
Atlantic cod adjacent to this province is not near extinction.�
�For only these reasons alone,� continued the minister, �this province was
against the listing of cod as endangered or threatened. This information clearly
shows that the recommendations from COSEWIC were lacking sufficient support.�
Minister Rideout says that COSEWIC is a credible organization, but could not
support their assessment of Atlantic cod adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador.
�Our government supports the work of COSEWIC,� continued the minister. �We
certainly believe that the conservation of any species is in the best interest
of the province over the long-term. However, we do feel that the recommendations
put forth by COSEWIC in this case were weak. We are pleased that the Government
of Canada has recommended not to add Atlantic cod to the list of species
protected under SARA.�
Minister Rideout says that the province does recognize that cod populations
adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador are at historically low levels, and the
province is putting forth efforts to protect and rebuild the resource.
�With the fisheries management measures currently in place, including a decrease
in the number of foreign fleets and increased enforcement, we believe recovery
of cod stocks can be achieved,� said the minister. �Our province will continue
to address the damage that foreign overfishing has inflicted on the Newfoundland
and Labrador fishery. We continue to push for reform of the Northwest Atlantic
Fisheries Organization (NAFO) and we will actively press the federal government
to follow a custodial management approach to straddling stocks.�
Media contact: Lori Lee Oates, ABC, Communications, (709) 729-3733, 690-8403
2005 11 29
3:50 p.m. |