In August, Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, announced that the Government of Canada is taking further action on the recommendations of Justice Cohen’s 2012 final report from the Commission of Inquiry into the Decline of Sockeye Salmon in the Fraser River.
According to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), the agency has already implemented over 30 of the recommendations it is responsible for and is working in collaboration with the Government of British Columbia, Environment and Climate Change Canada and other stakeholders and Indigenous groups to act on the recommendations.
DFO is releasing a formal document entitled Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s update on the Implementation of the Cohen Commission Recommendations that includes details on the status of all 75 recommendations, as well plans going forward.
The Cohen Commission report spans a range of issues including those addressing aquaculture, salmon fisheries, the Policy for Conservation of Wild Pacific Salmon, and science considerations.
Budget 2016 provided $197.1 million over five years to increase DFO’s oceans and freshwater science program including research and monitoring to improve the health of fish stocks, understand the impacts of ecosystem stressors, and support sustainable aquaculture. New scientists, biologists, oceanographers, and technicians in the Pacific Region will support a number of Cohen Commission recommendations.
The Recreational Fisheries Conservation Partnerships Program will also support the restoration and environmental sustainability of wild salmon and their habitat by providing $7.4M in 2016 to 55 community projects in BC.
Information concerning implementation of the Cohen Commission’s recommendations can be found at: http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/cohen/report-rapport-eng.htm
source: Fisheries and Oceans Canada