The following statement was given today in the House of Assembly by the Honourable Gerry Byrne, Minister of Fisheries and Land Resources:
Mr. Speaker, our wild Atlantic salmon resource in Newfoundland and Labrador is a shared heritage that we should all be very proud of. The greatest salmon conservationists in the world are the 30,000 fly fishermen from this province who are the true stewards of this resource, along with the many other people and communities that are directly connected to our salmon rivers.
The proof of this is found in the fact that over half of all wild Atlantic salmon produced anywhere on the entire continent of North America are produced in one place: Newfoundland and Labrador.
To make this point better understood and to celebrate our shared heritage, our government is joining with the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization to celebrate the international year of the salmon.
Recently, I joined with young, enthusiastic salmon conservationists from Roncalli Elementary at the Fluvarium to kick off a year full of events. This includes youth poster and essay contests, mobile exhibits, a permanent exhibit at the Salmonier Nature Park and a provincial salmon fly design contest.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that four eminent jurists have been selected to lead this fly-tying design challenge.
Darryl Reardon of Happy-Valley Goose Bay, Judith Guy of Mount Pearl, Bruce Andrews of Grand Falls-Windsor and Colin Burridge of Corner Brook will volunteer their time to confer bragging rights to the designer of Newfoundland and Labrador’s salmon fly.
Mr. Speaker, beyond the public outreach, our government is also engaged in leading-edge research on salmon ecology and in quantifying the effects of hook-and-release angling practices on fish mortality. We are moving forward on robust, smart regulation of our aquaculture industry and we are engaging with the Federal Government on ensuring Canada fulfills its full responsibilities in managing this resource.
No other province, no other place is celebrating the International year of the Salmon like Newfoundland and Labrador. I encourage everyone in this province to join in the celebration.
Thank you.