Ottawa must address effect of ice conditions on fisheries

As minister of Fisheries and Land Resources, I am writing to discuss the importance of the federal government providing compensation to harvesters and plant workers who have been impacted by the severe ice conditions we are seeing this spring around our coasts.

Traditionally at this time of year, snow crab and lobster fisheries would be starting or about to start, but ice conditions along the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador have delayed the start of these major inshore fisheries. Some snow crab areas, such as 3K, 3L, and 2J are currently open, but hundreds of vessels are unable to harvest due to extreme ice conditions. With the potential to see such delays until at least mid-May, many inshore harvesters and plant workers will face financial hardships as their employment insurance (EI) benefits will have been exhausted by that time.

I have asked federal Employment, Workforce Development and Labour Minister Patricia Hajdu to provide assistance to impacted individuals, as has been done in the past, in 1991 and 2007. The federal government has shown its co-operation with respect to other areas of the fish- ery, most recently last week when they announced they would start conducting full stock assessments on northern cod for the next five years, valued at $14 million.

Now is the time to see further co-operation by extending benefits for impacted individuals through extended EI benefits, or by offering equivalent compensation so that harvesters and plant workers hindered by the delays to fishing activity can obtain a reliable source of income for the foreseeable future.

Steve Crocker, minister Fisheries and Land Resources