CHAPTER 2 



total yield. The catch figures are averages for recent 

 years, and do not reflect the volatility of fisheries on this 

 coast, particularly salmon and herring. 



THE RESOURCES 



Table 2-1 Current and potential yields of the major spe- 

 cies of fish 



Our basic thrust is that fish and their stock 

 strength are the important issues. Without 

 fish we have no fisheries, and without a sound 

 biological basis and a positive goal-oriented 

 planning philosophy for their management, 

 we have no guarantee for a long-term fish 

 supply. 



NORTH-PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL CHAPTER OF 

 THE AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY' 



Fisheries policy must begin with the resource base. So 

 it is appropriate that the first of several issues identified 

 for investigation in the Commission's terms of reference 

 is "the condition of the stocks of fish within Canada's 

 jurisdiction oflT the Pacific coast, current levels of utiliza- 

 tion and their relationship to optimum rates of use." 



The initial public hearings revealed a great deal of 

 uncertainty regarding data on fish stocks, which some- 

 times impeded informed discussion about appropriate 

 policies and the impacts of various options. Accordingly, 

 the Commission made a special eff"ort to investigate the 

 status of the fish stocks and its findings are presented in 

 this chapter. 



PRODUCTION AND POTENTIALS 



To provide some perspective on the significance of the 

 various species. Table 2-1 shows recent catch levels for 

 the important categories of fish ofi" the Canadian Pacific 

 coast and our estimates of their maximum sustainable 

 yields. The catch data include the Canadian catch in the 

 commercial, sport and Indian fisheries. (The catch does 

 not necessarily reflect production from Canadian stocks 

 because Canadian fishermen make significant intercep- 

 tions of fish produced in United States waters and vice 

 versa.) 



The dominance of salmon in Canada's west coast catch 

 is readily apparent, as is the significant shortfall in the 

 current catch of salmon from potential levels. Herring, 

 which have shown even more erratic levels of yield, are 

 second in importance, and current catches are also far 

 below potential levels. These two fisheries dominate the 



' Includes commercial, sport and Indian catches, average for the years 



1971 to 1980. 

 •■ Average for the years 1971 to 1980. 



' Catch by Canadian fishermen only, average for years 1977 to 1980. 

 '' Average for the years 1976 to 1980. 

 ' Average for the years 1976 to 1980. Oyster production of 5.65 million 



pounds is excluded because it is mainly a mariculture product. 



Sources: The catch statistics provided were compiled from background 

 papers prepared for this Commission. Maximum sustainable 

 yields were estimated by the Commission's researchers. 



The total yield has remained fairly stable over the past 

 three decades, but the composition has changed 

 markedly: herring production collapsed dramatically and 

 then recovered; salmon stocks have had a mixed pattern 

 of declines and recoveries: halibut stocks have decHned; 

 and a number of minor fisheries have expanded. 



The wide ranges in the estimated sustainable yields 

 reflect the quality of the data available for analyzing the 

 status of our fish resources, which varies a great deal and 

 in some cases is very weak. For some species we have 

 good historical records of catches and consistent moni- 

 toring programs aimed at population assessment. For 

 others, especially some of the salmon stocks, data neces- 

 sary to make accurate estimates of potential productivity 

 are meagre and inconsistent. Thus, in many instances, 

 our best estimates are imprecise. The research needed to 

 overcome this inadequacy of information is discussed in 

 Chapter 6. 



SALMON 



The five species of Pacific salmon are by far our most 

 important fishery resource in both quantity and value. 

 While they have been known by a variety of common 



