Fishing dispute heats up in N.S.

And, so, it begins anew.

The latest round in the ongoing dispute between Ottawa and First Nations communities in Nova Scotia regarding moderate livelihood fishing rights, that is.

Conservation and protection officers from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans seized 37 traps from St. Peters Bay, Cape Breton, on April 30, the first day of lobster fishing season in that area.

The traps had been placed by nearby Potlotek First Nation.

None of this should come as a surprise. Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan surfaced long enough two months ago to announce that Indigenous fisheries would require DFOissued licences and be expected to comply with the April 30 to June 30 commercial fishing eason.

This was in response to last fall’s launch of the moderate livelihood fishery by mainland Nova Scotia community Sipekne’katik First Nation and a joint fishery with Potlotek and Eskasoni First Nations in Cape Breton. Violence had erupted over the claimed treaty right to fish for a moderate livelihood without a licence or seasonal limitations; Sipekne’katik harvesters' gear and property were vandalized by angry commercial fishers.

Unimpressed with Jordan’s shot across the bow, Potlotek Chief Wilbert Marshall, like First Nations across Atlantic Canada, stated he did not intend to follow DFO regulations, adding his harvesters would follow the community-led Netukulimk fisheries plan, which emphasizes conservation and would also start April 30.

Which brings us to last Friday’s seizures and anticipated response.

“The acts taken by conservation and protection officers on the water are shameful and unlawful … (The) seizure is yet another step backward for DFO,” said Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaw Chiefs fisheries lead Chief Gerald B. Toney from Annapolis Valley First Nation.

So, who’s right here?

Depends on who you ask.

The Supreme Court of Canada’s recognition of Indigenous treaty rights in the 1999 Marshall decision affirmed the Mi’kmaq treaty right to fish for a “moderate livelihood.” A subsequent court clarification stated the federal government could regulate Indigenous fisheries if “conservation” is a concern.

Still, that left grey areas which, as seen, led to Mi’kmaw fishermen catching lobster outside the federally mandated season and local commercial lobster fishers reacting with anger and, in some cases, violence.

Maybe it would help if Ottawa listened to former Nova Scotia premier Stephen McNeil’s suggestion that government define what constitutes legal harvesting in a “moderate livelihood” fishery.

Meanwhile, there is plenty of distrust. Until all parties with a stake in the lucrative seafood sector agree to even be in the same room, a resolution seems light years away.

Expect more court battles, more spending on high-priced lawyers, possibly more violence and, unless some clarity is brought to the table, little chance of an agreement all sides can live with.