neighborhood of 2^0 million pounds, and 

 that of other countries had already grown 

 to lUO million pounds. If the rate of uti- 

 lization remains the same as that of 195ii 

 and the stock increases as expected, about 

 liOO million pounds could be taken annually 

 from Subarea U on a sustained yield basis, 

 and Canada should continue to take the 

 greatest share of the catch. 



2. Haddock 



The center of abundance and of the 

 commercial fishery for haddock in Canadian 

 Atlantic waters is in the inshore and off- 

 shore waters of Nova Scotia. Haddock are 

 at the northern limit of their occurrence 

 in commercial quantities in the southern 

 part of Subarea 3 (the Grand Bank); conse- 

 quently, in this area their abundance is 

 largely at the mercy of climatic trends. 



The Royal Commission estimates the 

 rate of removal in Subarea 3 at about iiO 

 percent. On that basis, it estimated the 

 stock in I95I4 to be about 2U0 million 

 pounds. Average landings in 1953-51j a- 

 mounted to some 100 million pounds; 50 

 million by Canada and 50 million by other 

 countries. By the period 1955-56, however, 

 these average landings had doubled, evi- 

 dencing a large increase in the stock and 

 an increase in fishing effort, (table VII- 

 3). It is likely, though not proven, that 

 much of the increase in haddock stock in 

 Subarea 3 was a result of warming of the 

 ocean since the late 1920' s. However, the 

 subsequent return to cooler temperatures, 

 if it does occur and if it continues, could 

 reduce the stock and catch considerably. 

 It is expected, therefore, that by I98O the 

 stock of Subarea 3 will be only 120 million 

 pounds, and that landings will drop to some 

 50 million pounds, with Canada taking half 

 of the harvest. 



The annual landings of haddock have re- 

 mained fairly constant over the past 25 

 years, (table VII-U). The proportion landed 

 by Canada, however, has been growing con- 

 stantly. In the period 1931-35, Canada 

 accounted for only 37 percent of total land- 

 ings from the area; by 1956 this had grown 

 to 70 percent. This increase by Canada, 

 especially during the post-war years, is 

 attributable to a growing fleet of Canadian 

 otter-trawlers and to an increase in the 

 size of the stocks resulting (probably) 

 from more favorable water ten5)eratures. 



While it is expected that the stock 

 of haddock in Subarea h will decline 10 

 percent to a level of about 220 million 

 pounds by I98O, total landings should in- 

 crease slightly due to the program of mesh 

 regulation. Landings of about ll5 million 

 pounds may be anticipated by I98O, with 

 Canada landing 70 million pounds of the 

 total, and United States' landings remain- 

 ing about the same as in recent years, be- 

 tween I4O and 1|5 million pounds. 



3. Ocean Perch 



The fishery for ocean perch is a re- 

 cent development in Canada. It was begun 

 in the United States ty New England trawl- 

 ers in the I930's in local waters, but as 

 local supplies were reduced the fishery 

 gradually extended northward. Canadian 

 landings of ocean perch were not too sig- 

 nificant until 1951, when 38 million pounds 

 were landed from ICNAF Subarea 3, mostly 

 from the eaistern slope of the Grand Bank. 

 Since that year, however, Canadian landings 

 from that Subarea have continually declined, 

 reaching a low of 7.9 million pounds in 

 1956. The decline has been largely due to 

 a concentration of the Canadian fleet on 

 haddock, and some transfer of Newfoundland 

 effort in ocean perch fishing to the more 

 prolific grounds of the G\ilf of St. Law- 

 rence, There has also been a drop in a- 

 bundance of ocean perch on the Newfound- 

 land fishing grounds on the eastern slope 

 of the Grand Bank. 



The average Canadian catch of ocean 

 perch from Subarea 3 has dropped considera- 

 bly from the 1952-51* figure of 2li million 

 pounds used by the Royal Commission. Based 

 on the 1955-56 average, landings have fall- 

 en to about 8 million pounds annually. 

 The same is true of average landings by 

 United States trawlers from the Subarea, 

 which fell from 69 million pounds in the 

 1952-5ii period to 29 million pounds in 

 1955-56, (table VII-5). This reflects the 

 fact that the fishery in the area is still 

 in the stage of removal of accumulated 

 stock. Because of the long period of growth 

 required, there has not been time for the 

 exploited stocks to respond to fishing by 

 increased recinitment. It is expected, 

 however, that total production will return 

 to the 1952-5it level of 90 million pounds 

 by I98O since the addition of new grounds- 

 will condensate for the reduced yields on 



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