Notices to Fish Harvesters

Amended, March 29, 2023

Approved March 22, 2023

1.   

Application

This Conservation Harvesting Plan (CHP) applies fleets that are licensed to fish for snow crab in areas 12A, 12C, 14, 15, 16, 16A and 17.

2.   

Fishing Areas

The fishing areas coordinates are listed in the Conditions of licence and are also indicated on the fishing areas maps, which are available at the following address:

Commercial Fisheries

3.   

Fishing closures

That portion of the Saguenay River situated upstream of a straight line connecting the

following points: 

1.       48°07'24" N    69°43'00’’ W (Pointe Noire)

2.       48°08'06" N    69°42'06" W (Pointe Rouge)

3.1       

Coral and Sponge Conservation Areas in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence  

On December 15, 2017, Fisheries and Oceans Canada created eleven coral and sponge conservation areas in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence in order to protect areas with high concentrations of sponges and sea pens.

All fishing activities that use bottom-contact gear or gear designed to come into contact with the sea bed, including but not limited to bottom trawls, dredges, gillnets, bottom longlines, bottom seines and traps, are forbidden in the conservation areas.

For more information and maps of the eleven coral and sponge conservation areas, please visit the dedicated DFO website: Coral and Sponge Conservation Measures in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence.

3.2       

Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area

On March 6, 2019, Fisheries and Oceans Canada created, jointly with the Quebec government, the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area (MPA) in order to the ensure the conservation and protection of this marine ecosystem.

Provisions of the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area Regulations apply to licence holders. In order to comply with them, please refer to the clauses that apply to your fishing activities: Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area Regulations.

4.   

Fishing seasons

 

Area	Sub-area	Number of weeks
Gaspésie-Bas-Saint-Laurent	12A	10
Côte-Nord	12C Group A	14
Côte-Nord	12C Group B	14
Côte-Nord	14	14
Côte-Nord	15	14
Côte-Nord	16	14
Côte-Nord	16A	14
Gaspésie-Bas-Saint-Laurent	17	13

 

Specific periods will be confirmed by Notice to Fish Harvesters or Variation Orders. The following seasons will be in effect for the duration of this CHP. They represent the maximum duration of fishing periods. Opening dates may vary according to particular circumstances such as industry requests and the TAC announcement while closing dates may be advanced according to factors such as the reach of quotas or when risks of exceeding them are high.

Forecasts of air temperatures below 0 ºC for the first week of fishing and / or ice cover may delay the opening. An opening committee is in place. The opening date will be confirmed by a Variation Order following the final recommendation of the opening committee and an agreement on the opening date.

It should be reminded that it is the responsibility of the captain to acquaint himself with the marine safety notices published by Environment and Climate Change Canada and Transport Canada as well as with the standards and best practices in marine safety and to take all measures necessary to insure a safe fishery during the period where fishing is authorized.

No season extensions will be granted except for circumstances beyond the control of the industry or DFO.

5.   

Number of licences, access and allocations

Fishing area	Group	Number of licences	Access (%)	Selected operating scenario *	Initial allocation 2023 (tons)
12A	-	9	100%	Adjoining between superior and intermediate (5%)	44,62
12C	Total	37	100%	Intermediary (status quo)	66,69
12C	A	5	68,7%	Intermediary (status quo)	45,82
12C	B	32	31,3%	Intermediary (status quo)	20,87
14	-	19	100%	Intermediary (25%)	388,38
15	Total	30	100%	Intermediary (35%)	322,26
15	A	8	90,7%	Intermediary (35%)	292,29
15	B	22	9,3%	Intermediary (35%)	29,97
16	Total	51	100%	Intermediary (15%)	2585,95
16	A	36	92,7%	Intermediary (15%)	2397,18
16	B and C	15	7,3%	Intermediary (15%)	188,77
16A	-	35	100%	Intermediary (20%)	294.14
17	Total	39	100%	Intermediary (15%)	1 394,49
17	A	20	88%	Intermediary (15%)	1 227,15
17	B	19	12%	Intermediary (15%)	167,34

*Operating scenario identified during the assessment of snow crab stocks in the Estuary and northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (upper, intermediate or lower). The value in parentheses indicates the relative deviation (%) of the scenario from the previous year's landings.

6.   

Management Regime

All fleets in areas 12A, 12C, 14, 15, 16, 16A and 17 are under an individual transferable quota programs (ITQ).

 

Administrative guidelines of the ITQ program of the snow crab of area 12A, 12C (groups A and B), 14, 15 (groups A and B), 16 (groups A and B), 16A and 17 (groups A and B)  fleets are included in the regional guidelines, which is available on the DFO Quebec Region website at the following address: Regional Guidelines for the Management of Individual Transferable Quota Programs.

7.   

Fishing Gear

7.1       

 Number of traps allowed

A standard trap (maximum 2.1 m3) can be replaced by two conical traps with a circular base with a maximum diameter of 1.22 m.

Fishing area	Group	Maximum number of traps Standard	Maximum number of traps Japanese
12A	-	75	150
12C	A	100	200
12C	B	50	100
14	-	85	170
15	A	85	170
15	B	50	100
16	A	100	200
16	B and C	35*	70*
16A	-	85**	170**
17	A	85	170
17	B	50	100

* A maximum of 50 standard traps or 100 Japanese traps may be used by licence holders who will benefit from temporary transfers totalling more than 8,000 kg.

** Area 16A: For permit holders who hold an individual quota equivalent to twice the initial quota, the number of traps will be increased by 25%. The authorized number of traps will be increased to 106 standard traps or 213 Japanese traps.

If applicable, additional traps may be allocated following the approval of permanent transfers, in accordance with the procedures set out in the Administrative Directives.

All traps used for fishing must be equipped with a biodegradable escape mechanism, as described in the Conditions of Licence.

7.2

 Tagging

All traps used for fishing must have a single annual tag (green) with a unique identification number. Fishermen are required to obtain their tags from suppliers approved by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), the list of which is available at the following address: http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/sdc-cps/nir-nei/tags-supplier-region-eng.htm

Fishermen will receive replacement tags (orange) corresponding to 5% (Area 17) or 10% (Areas 12A, 12C, 14, 15, 16 and 16A) of the number of gear allowed, during their initial order. Other replacement tags could be available upon request.

It is prohibited to carry on board a fishing vessel an unlabelled fishing gear.

7.3

 Lifting of gear

It is the fishermen's responsibility to lift their fishing gear at least every 72 hours.

8.   

Management measures to minimize the risks of interactions with the North Atlantic Right Whale

Since 2017, Fisheries and Oceans Canada has put in place additional management measures to protect marine mammal including the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale from entanglement in fishing gear and ship strikes. These measures take into account the best available scientific data and can be adapted if necessary to take into account future developments regarding interactions prevention.

The following requirements have been implemented in order to reduce the risk of entanglement of North Atlantic Right Whales:

8.1       

Amount of Rope Floating on the Surface of the Water

The following requirements are in place to minimize the length of rope floating on the surface of the water and reduce the risk of North Atlantic Right Whales entanglements:

-      

A maximum of 6.4 metres (3.5 fathoms) of rope shall be used when attaching  secondary buoys to a primary buoy.

-      

At the exception of the rope attaching secondary buoys , it is forbidden at all times to float a rope on the surface of the water.

Note: A primary buoy is defined as a buoy or other floating device attached to a fishing gear. A secondary buoy is defined as a buoy or other floating device attached to a primary buoy.

8.2       

Gear Marking

Licence holders using fixed gear must mark the rope used to attach a fishing gear to a primary buoy with colours specific to the region, targeted species and fishing area in which they are authorized to fish. This requirement is intended to facilitate the identification of the area where an entanglement has occurred. The following coloured markings are required for each fleet:

 

The gear marking requirement consisting of interlacing different coloured twine sections within existing rope must be implemented as follows:

 

a)   

The first colour to identify specific Region – to be interlaced on the same segment of rope as the second colour.

 

b)   

The second colour to identify target Species – to be interlaced on the same segment of rope as the first colour.

 

c)   

The third colour to mark different fishing areas must be interlaced. The third colour must be interlaced immediately before or after the segment of rope containing the first two colours. The third colour must not be interlaced within the same segment containing the first and second colour.

 

The above coloured twine markings must be permanently interlaced within the rope. Each coloured twine must be interlaced in the rope on a minimum length of 15 cm. The use of paint or tape is not an admissible alternative to twine.

The minimum requirements regarding the number and position of colour markings are detailed in the Conditions of licence.

For more information

All the information on gear marking measures has been published in Notice to Fish Harvesters, available at the following link: Notice to Fish Harvesters

8.3       

Additional Identification of Buoys

In addition to the regulatory requirement to mark buoys with the vessel registration number (VRN), licence holders are required to add a sequential number on each primary buoy in order to be able to individually identify each fishing gear. This additional requirement will help identify and retrieve lost gear and could also help identify the sector where a NARW may have become entangled.

The sequential number shall be solid block Arabic numerals:

-      

Without ornamentation;

 

-      

Written in a smaller or bigger font size than the VRN so as to be capable of differentiating the number from the VRN; and

 

-      

In a colour that contrasts with the buoy’s colour.

8.4       

Requirement to report lost and retrieved gear 

Lost gear reporting

Lost fishing gear is defined as any active fishing gear previously set by the licence holder and fishing vessel operator which was sought but not found.

 

The licence holder or fishing vessel operator must report any of their lost fishing gear within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of lost gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) through the FISHING GEAR Reporting system available online at Fishing Gear Reporting System or by completing the Lost fishing gear form available online at Reporting requirements for commercial fisheries  or in Annex of Conditions of licence, according to instructions on the form.

 

If the licence holder or fishing vessel operator is using an Electronic logbook, lost fishing gear must be reported to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of lost gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) by completing the section reserved for that purpose in its electronic logbook.

 

Retrieved gear reporting

The licence holder or fishing vessel operator must report the retrieval of any of their own previously reported lost gear within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of retrieved gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) through the Fishing gear reporting system available online at Fishing Gear Reporting System or by completing the Retrieval of previously reported lost fishing gear form available online at Reporting requirements for commercial fisheries or in Annex of Conditions of licence, according to instructions on the form. Retrieval can only occur during the validity period of the Conditions of licence and only in relation to the specific type of gear authorized to be used by the Conditions of licence.

 

If the licence holder or fishing vessel operator is using an Electronic logbook , the retrieval of any of their own previously reported lost gear must be reported within 24 hours of returning to port at the end of the fishing trip. Reports of retrieved gear must be submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) by completing the section reserved for that purpose in its electronic logbook.

8.5       

What to do if you observe a North Atlantic right whale

First of all, it is important to maintain a minimum distance of 100 meters from the animal and 200 meters if the whale is accompanied by a calve. Details regarding sightings of live and free-swimming right whales may be provided to DFO at: XMARWhalesightings@dfo-mpo.gc.ca or by phone at 1-844-800-8568. If you observe this species, please send us your contact information and information about the sighting (date, time, geographical position, number of individuals, etc.). If possible, you can also send us photos or videos.

If you see a right whale entangled in fishing gear, you should not under any circumstances attempt to release it on your own. The behaviour of an entangled individual is unpredictable and dangerous. You should contact "Marine Mammal Emergencies" at 1-877-722-5346 as soon as possible to share information that will help to organize an appropriate response by experts (time and position of the entangled animal, behaviour of the individual, details on the weather and the state of the sea, etc.).

9.   

Marine mammal interaction reporting

Licence holders must provide information regarding all interactions with a marine mammal that occur during fishing expeditions including: bycatch, collisions and all sightings of entangled marine mammals. To do this, the Marine Mammal Interaction Form must be completed and submitted by email to DFO.NAT.InteractionsMM-InteractionsMM.NAT.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca within 48 hours after the end of a fishing trip.

A copy of the form is attached to the Conditions of licence and can also be downloaded and submitted online at the following address:  Report a marine mammal or sea turtle incident or sighting

The information provided on this form will be used by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) to estimate levels of accidental mortality and injury to marine mammals. This information will allow DFO to better assess the types of threats that may affect Canada's marine mammals and to develop mitigation strategies.

In addition, if you observe a dead or distressed animal, please contact Marine Mammal Emergencies as soon as possible at 1-877-722-5346. If possible, do not hesitate to take photos or videos that will allow DFO to assess the situation and identify the species.

10.  

Hail Prior To Departure

The hail out call is mandatory and must be made before 7 p.m. the day before each fishing expedition.

11.  

At-sea Observer

At-sea observer coverage, at industry expense, is described in terms of the percentage of fishing expeditions in the following table for each fishing area.

 

Fishing area	At-sea observers coverage
12A	10%
12C	10%
14	5%
15	10%
16	10%
16A	10%
17	10%

 

The percentage of coverage must be distributed throughout the season, throughout the area and may be modified according to unexpected conservation needs that may arise during the fishing season.

12.  

Dockside Monitoring

Prior to the commencement of a fishing expedition, licence holders or their operators must have entered into an agreement with a dockside verification company legally designated by DFO, a list of which is available at: Monitoring Programs (dfo-mpo.gc.ca).

 

Areas 12A, 15, 16 and 17: A call for entry is required at least 30 minutes prior to arrival at the dock.

 

Areas 12C, 14 and 16A: A call for entry is required upon arrival at the dock.

 

Dockside verification is mandatory for 100% of landings.

 

Landings must be made at one of the designated dockside monitoring harbors, the list of which is available at the following address: Designated Dockside Monitoring Ports (dfo-mpo.gc.ca)

 

When using an Electronic Logbook, you must communicate your unique Electronic Logbook Identifier to the Dockside Monitoring Company before hail in and also provide it to the dockside observer.

13.  

Catch and effort data declaration

Zones 12C, 14, 15 et 16A

13.1   

Combined form / Logbook

Licence holders must acquire their booklet of Combined Forms from a prequalified supplier identified by DFO, whose list is available at the following address: http://www.dfompo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/sdc-cps/nir-nei/log-suppliers-eng.html.

 

The Logbook section must be duly completed before arrival at port and the completed form must be sent to DFO after each fishing expedition.

13.2   

Electronic logbook

The use of an electronic logbook (Elog) is optional in 2023. Fish harvesters must use a client application approved by Fisheries and Oceans Canada for the Quebec region for the form ELOG - Logbook - Traps (except lobster). Furthermore, fish harvesters must have obtained and installed their Elog Key in their client application in order to allow data transmission to the Department.

The Elog must be completed for each fishing expedition and “closed” before arriving at port. A fishing expedition means a voyage that commences at the time a fishing vessel leaves a port to engage in fishing and terminates at the time fish caught during that period are offloaded. Hence, when a fisher goes back to port for a reason other than for offloading fish and leaves port again, the fishing expedition goes on until fish are offloaded.

To consult the list of client applications approved by the Department and to obtain you Elog key, visit Fisheries and Ocean’s web page at the following address: Electronic logbooks (ELOGS)

 

To request a modification to data that has been transmitted to Fisheries and Oceans, you must communicate with the client support service at 1-877-535-7307.

14.

Electronic logbook

Zones 12A, 16 et 17

 

The use of an electronic logbook (Elog) is mandatory. Fish harvesters must use a client application approved by Fisheries and Oceans Canada for the Quebec region for the form ELOG - Logbook -crab. Furthermore, fish harvesters must have obtained and installed their Elog Key in their client application in order to allow data transmission to the Department.

The Elog must be completed for each fishing expedition and “closed” before arriving at port. A fishing expedition means a voyage that commences at the time a fishing vessel leaves a port to engage in fishing and terminates at the time fish caught during that period are offloaded. Hence, when a fisher goes back to port for a reason other than for offloading fish and leaves port again, the fishing expedition goes on until fish are offloaded.

To consult the list of client applications approved by the Department and to obtain you Elog key, visit Fisheries and Ocean’s web page at the following address: Electronic logbooks (ELOGS)

 

To request a modification to data that has been transmitted to Fisheries and Oceans, you must communicate with the client support service at 1-877-535-7307.

15.

Vessel Monitoring System

The use of a Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) approved by DFO is mandatory. Each licence holder must register his DFO-approved VMS unit prior to the beginning of his fishing activities. Data transmission every 15 minutes is required.

The current list of DFO-approved VMS units and the procedure and form to register a VMS unit are available at the following address:

 

http://dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/sdc-cps/vessel-monitoring-surveillance-navire/index-eng.html

16.

Release of white crab and adolescent crab

Release of white crab and adolescent crab (small claws) is allowed. They must be returned to the water, at the place of their capture and, if they are still alive, so as to hurt

them as little as possible.

17.

Follow-up protocol for white crab

Area 12A: Fishery closure as soon as an average percentage of 20% of soft-shelled crab in catches at sea for a period of 14 consecutive days.

 

Areas 12C, 14, 15, 16 and 16A: A closure of the area will occur upon reaching 20% of soft-shell crab in at-sea catches, if applicable.

 

Area 17: Closure of the fishery as soon as 20% white crab is reached in the catch at sea for a period of 14 consecutive days before May 1st and a period of 7 consecutive days after May 1st.

18.  

Simultaneous fisheries

On a single fishing trip or on different fishing expeditions, the license holder and fishing vessel operator who hold both valid License Conditions for Greenland halibut or ITQ Atlantic halibut and valid Snow Crab License Conditions may practice both fisheries simultaneously if the Greenland halibut or Atlantic halibut is conducted in the following Subareas:

Area 12A: 4S1, 4S4, 4T3a or 4T4.

Areas 12C, 14, 15 and 16A: Not applicable.

Area 16: 4S1, 4S2 or 4T4.

Area 17 : 4S1 or 4T4.

19.

Boat

The Maximum Length (ML) of vessels that fishers may use is specified by fishing area and group in the following table :

Fishing Area	Group	ML	Vessel rental
12A	-	15,24	No vessel rental will be allowed with commercial licence holders living outside the Gaspe Peninsula area.
12C, 14, 15 and 16A	-	19,81	Leasing of boats from outside the North Shore area will not be allowed.
16	A	19,81	Snow crab licence holders of area 16 group A are not allowed to lease a boat owned by a licence holder of area 16 groups B or C and vice versa.
16	B and C	15,24	Snow crab licence holders of area 16 group A are not allowed to lease a boat owned by a licence holder of area 16 groups B or C and vice versa.
17	A	19,81	-
17	B	15,24	-

20.

Partnership (combining of licences)

To take advantage of a partnership agreement, licence holders must place their request through the National Online Licencing System (NOLS).

Area 12A: A temporary buddy-up of two licence holders is authorized, provided both licence holders are on board the boat used during all fishing operations. The maximum number of traps authorized will be equal to the sum of the number of traps initially authorized to each of the two licence holders under the valid Harvesting Plan and the Administrative Guidelines. A temporary buddy-up may be renewed annually, and both licence holders may not avail themselves of this opportunity for more than five years (consecutive or not).

Areas 12C, 14, 15 and 16A: Temporary licence partnering agreements(Buddy-up) is permitted between licensees in the same group for up to four licensees per agreement.

Licence holders will be held jointly liable for any illegal acts committed during fishing activities.

Licence holders involved in a partnership agreement may use a maximum number of traps equivalent to the addition of the maximum authorized number for two of the licences holders involved in the partnership agreement, but may not exceed 200 standard traps.

 

Landings are prorated to the individual quotas of licensees that are part of a partnership agreement. Only one partnership agreement per licence holder is authorized for the fishing season.

The agreement request must be submitted to DFO at least 5 business days prior to the first fishing expedition. The partnership agreement is effective for the entire fishing season for the species concerned. In addition, unless there are exceptional reasons, DFO will not issue replacement authorizations to fishers involved in a partnership agreement.

Area 16: Not applicable

Area 17:

Group A: Partnership between two Group A license holders is authorized in 2023. Both license holders must be on board for all fishing expeditions of the target species. The agreement must be submitted to DFO via the National Online Licensing System (NOLS) prior to the opening of the fishery and, unless there are exceptional reasons, DFO will not issue replacement authorization to fishermen involved in a partnership  agreement. Landings are accounted for in proportion to the respective ITQs. The maximum number of traps authorized will be equal to the sum of the number of traps initially authorized to each of the two license holders. Partnership will be re-evaluated on an annual basis.

Group B: Partnership between two Group B license holders is authorized. Both license holders must be on board for all fishing expeditions of the target species. if any. The agreement must be submitted to DFO via the National Online Licensing System prior to the opening of the fishery and, unless there are exceptional reasons, DFO will not issue replacement licenses to fishermen involved in a partnership  agreement. Landings are accounted for in proportion to the respective ITQs. The maximum number of combined traps of the two license holders is 75.

21.

Quota reconciliation

Under quota reconciliation, any overrun of individual quota incurred by a licence holder in one season will be deducted, by a factor of one to one, from the individual quota established for the following season. It is the responsibility of license holders to monitor their quotas to ensure that catches made in the course of their fishing activities respect the quotas allocated to them. Fishermen will be notified of the reconciliation of their individual quota by means of a note of information attached to their Conditions of licence.

22.  

Species At Risk Act

Pursuant to the Species at Risk Act, 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 Conservation Harvesting Plan is promulgated, the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence species susceptible to being captured are the following: the Spotted Wolffish, the Northern Wolffish, the Leatherback Turtle and the Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River population). New species could be added during the course of the year.

All incidental captures of species at risk must be immediately returned to the water where they were captured and, if the animal is still alive, in the manner that causes it the least harm. All incidental captures of species at risk must be recorded in the « Species at Risk » section of the logbook. Furthermore, all interactions with species at risk, notably the North Atlantic Right Whale, the Blue Whale (Atlantic population), the Beluga Whale (St. Lawrence Estuary population) and the White Shark (Atlantic population), must be recorded in this section of the logbook.

 

These requirements are additional to any obligation to declare an interaction with a marine mammal using the prescribed form (see section Marine mammal interaction reporting).

23.  

Crew registry

Since April 1st, 2021, inshore commercial licence holders, and their approved Substitute Operators, must keep records of all the crew members working aboard the vessel on every fishing trip. These records must be maintained by the licence holder for a period of five (5) years. This requirement does not apply to pre-1979 corporation licence and to any licence issued under the authority of the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations. For further details, refer to the March 17th, 2021 Notice to Fish Harvesters at Notices to Fish Harvesters or contact the Licensing Office at 1-877-535-7307 or fishing-peche@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

24.  

Discharge of waste

Since 2022, all commercial fisheries in Canada have a new condition of licence relating to the discharge of garbage from Canadian fishing vessels. The licence holder is prohibited from discarding in Canadian fisheries waters from their vessel any item that may be harmful to fish or fish habitat . Please refer to the following New condition of licence relating to discharge of garbage season 2022 (2022-03-29) (dfo-mpo.gc.ca)

25.  

Conditions of licence

To obtain their Conditions of licence, fish harvesters must access the National Online Licensing System. For National Online Licensing System assistance, please contact customer support by phone at 1 877‑535-7307 or by email at fishing-peche@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

Approved by:

Maryse Lemire

Fisheries Management Regional Director

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Quebec

For any question regarding this CHP

You may call at:

 

North Shore area: 1-800-463-1729

Gaspé-Lower St. Lawrence area: 1-877-898-5559

For additional information

Please visit our website at the following address: Fisheries.