St. John’s , March 24 2006 – The Atlantic Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers (ACFAM) met in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, today. The ACFAM is made up of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers from the Atlantic provinces, Quebec, Nunavut and the federal government.
“It was my pleasure to welcome the ACFAM to St. John’s and I very much enjoyed hosting my counterparts from the other Atlantic Provinces, Quebec and Nunavut. My department looks forward to continued positive relations in the future” said co-chair Tom Rideout, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture in Newfoundland and Labrador.
“This was an important opportunity to meet with my colleagues to discuss the challenges that lie ahead for our fishing and aquaculture industries and how we can better work together to develop long-term, sustainable solutions for our resources and those that depend on them,” said co-chair Loyola Hearn, Federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.
DFO’s objectives for Fisheries renewal - improve conservation outcomes, stabilize access and allocation, share stewardship, modernize compliance and take steps to improve the economic viability of the fishing sector - were key items of discussion among Ministers. Provinces and Nunavut expressed support for this new direction and for Minister Hearn’s vision of sustainable management of the publicly-owned resource for the greatest benefit to Canadians. They called on the federal government to proceed as soon as possible with changes to the Fisheries Act.
Federal-provincial and territorial governments agreed that they must work collectively to develop comprehensive approaches to manage oceans resources from sea to market, to find long-term solutions to challenges in the fishery and aquaculture sector and to identify new opportunities.
During the meeting:
The Council received a presentation from the Canadian Centre for Fisheries Innovation (CCFI) on its efforts to expand its activities throughout the Atlantic. Ministers expressed their appreciation for the work of the Centre and supported the long-term viability of the Centre.
Given the opening of the seal hunt tomorrow and recent media attention over this activity, Ministers acknowledged that the annual seal hunt is well-managed, sustainable, humane and legitimate.
The ACFAM meets on a regular basis to discuss and work collaboratively on fisheries and aquaculture issues of particular interest to Eastern Canada.
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For more information:
Steve Outhouse
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
(613) 992-3474
Sophie Galarneau
Media Relations
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
(613) 990-7537
Lori Lee Oates
Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
(709) 729-3733