Zo Ann Morten speaking at the Standing Committee on Fisheries, Dec. 7, 2016

Recent cuts to Salmonid Enhancement Programming

If you would like to voice your concerns please write to PM Trudeau and Mnister LeBlanc and post your letters on messageboard or take the "Say no to SEP cuts" letter writing challenge on FB

Lakelse sockeye stocks experienced a significant decline for several cycles from the late 90’s through 2010 and were identified as a high priority by DFO North Coast Area. The construction of a regulated-flow side-channel in Lower Williams Creek has been identified by the DFO North Coast Resource Restoration Unit as the greatest potential opportunity to further improve Lakelse sockeye stocks and safeguard current spawning and incubation.
as noted on the Pacific Salmon Commission page
also working with 1st Nations, community volunteers, municipalities...........

Technical contracts - these people are hired to augment the knowledge of the community advisor and to assist in the time frames that the CA's are more busy (fish work happens in spurts) a way to reduce the cost of hiring more full time government staff and have them help out as needed to fulfill workplans, volunteers are working with live animals and have a set of best management practises to adhere to. These people also assisted community with technical help as to watershed planning, mapping, restiration, helped school groups, helped new CA's

Salmonids in the classroom - working from a Strategy paper to educate our next generation on the wonder of salmon and their lifecycles - having just celebrated 40 yrs of programming this program has influenced many as they transitioned from childhood to adulthood with knowledge of salmon and ecosystems

DFO will no longer support any steelhead or trout enhancement in federal facilities Feds already have the infrastructure of building, staff and knowledge to enhance runs where numbers are so low as to put the stocks in danger

We were all celebrating 40 years of the highly successful Salmonid Enhancement Program at the same time these cuts were being stick handled through the process. We have been looking forward to working collaboratively with government and working with their decisions in the implementation of the Cohen commission recommendations, Wild Salmon Policy and the standing committee recommendations on the Fisheries Act. While the DFO speaking notes on these cuts mentions how the removal of these people and programs will assist them to do the above, it makes little sense to remove the very foundation of habitat knowledge that would have assisted.

One example is
Recommendation 30
That any revision to the Fisheries Act should include direction for restoration and recovery of fish habitat and stocks.

Take care ZoAnn

Resource Restoration Unit - Engineer, biologist team through the resource restoration unit, to help volunteers plan projects that are beneficial to salmonids, they are also the ones who know the habitat and unique salmon stocks and set priorities for works in watersheds