Comparing proposed changes
Backgrounder
Comparing proposed changes
| Restoring lost protection | |
|---|---|
| Before proposed amendments | After proposed amendments |
| Not all fish and fish habitat protected; only those related to a commercial, recreational or Aboriginal fishery protected | Protection of all fish and fish habitat |
| New modern safefuards | |
| Before proposed amendments | After proposed amendments |
| No explicit reference to consideration of the rights of Indigenous peoples, and their unique knowledge, to inform decision making | Provided Indigenous traditional knowledge must inform habitat decisions Requirement to consider adverse effects of decisions on the rights of Indigenous peoples |
| Ability to enter into certain agreements restricted to provinces and territories only | Added ability to enter into agreements with Indigenous governing bodies as well as provinces and territories |
| No provisions regarding the independence of inshore licence holders | Provisions allowing for recognition of social, economic and cultural factors, as well as the preservation or promotion of the independence of licence holders in commercial inshore fisheries Enabling regulations to support independent inshore licence holders |
| No tools to quickly implement in-season fisheries restrictions to address unforeseen conservation and management issues | Ability to put in place targeted short-term measures to quickly and effectively respond to unforeseen threats to the management of fisheries and to the conservation of fish |
| Uncertainty as to when authorizations are required for development projects | Clarity on which types of projects require authorizations through permitting and codes of practice |
| Lack of transparency regarding authorization decisions for projects; no requirement to publicly release information on these decisions | Requirement to publicly release information on project decisions through an online registry |
| No tools to address long-term marine conservation | Ability to create long-term area-based restrictions on fishing activities to protect marine biodiversity |
| No specific provisions to address whales in captivity | A prohibition on fishing cetaceans with intent to take them into captivity unless authorized by the Minister in circumstances where the animal is injured, in distress or in need of care |
| No legal requirements related to rebuilding fish stocks | Minister must consider whether stock rebuilding measures are in place when making a fisheries management decision that would impact a
depleted stock Enabling regulations respecting the rebuilding of fish stocks |
| Antiquated provision for the management offences under the Fisheries Act, often leading to costly and long court processes | Ability to address Fisheries Act offences outside of court using alternative measures agreements, which reduces costs and repeat offences |
| No provisions to restore degraded habitat as part of development project reviews | Provisions to consider restoration priorities as part of development project reviews |
| Insufficient capacity to enforce provisions under the Act | Enhanced enforcement and monitoring capacity on the water and for projects |
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