RESEARCH AND INFORMATION 69 



nation Creek Study, through cooperative arrangements 

 with the provincial government and industrial compa- 

 nies. Such research should be designed to complement 

 the aquatic habitat inventory program I proposed in 

 Chapter 3. 



Fundamental and Conceptual Research 



Fisheries management and development programs are 

 ultimately based on models and hypotheses about the 

 dynamics of fish populations, the interactions between 

 fish and their environment, the effects of harvesting and 

 so on. In order to improve the Department's operational 

 management techniques, these hypotheses must be con- 

 tinuously tested, revised and elaborated by means of fun- 

 damental biological research. 



This more profound research involves long-term stud- 

 ies requiring continuity and some insulation from day-to- 

 day problems. But many of the Department's on-going 

 activities are fertile .sources of data: enhancement pro- 

 jects, fishing programs and properly monitored changes 

 to the environment can all yield valuable mformation for 

 testing scientific concepts. So, while basic scientific 

 research should not be disrupted by the kaleidoscope of 

 immediate problems, it should nevertheless be conducted 

 in close association with the Department's management 

 and development programs. 



The Department's Research Branch has developed 

 considerable strength in basic biological research and 

 contributed substantially to scientific understanding of 

 fish population dynamics, environmental influences on 

 the survival of salmon in streams and the propagation of 

 shellfish, among other things. My mvestigations have 

 identified needs for basic research on other problems: the 

 basic relationships between salmon and herring escape- 

 ments and stock recruitments, which 1 have already 

 emphasized: the genetics of salmon; the early life of 

 salmon at sea: and the feasibility of culturing fish. An 

 important question for fisheries management policy in 

 this region is the interdependence among salmon, her- 

 ring, dogfish, seals and sea lions. Conflicting opinions 

 about these were revealed at the Commission's hearings: 

 yet the Department has no organized program of 

 research to clanfy the underlying relationships needed 

 for informed management decisions. 



But I am unable to recommend the specific compo- 

 nents of the required program of basic research, for sev- 

 eral reasons. First, doing so would call for scientific 

 judgements that are beyond my expertise. Second, the 

 benefits of such research are always uncertain, and to 

 minimize the gamble, priorities should take account of 

 the quality of proposals and the talents of the available 

 staff. And third. I have already recommended in Chapter 

 4 a general assessment of fish stocks, identification of 

 management problems and the options for future man- 



agement and enhancement. This thorough review should 

 provide the context in which long-term research priorities 



are set. 



Economic. Social and Industrial Research 



The Department's research efl^ort has always empha- 

 sized biology, engineering and the technology of fishing 

 and processing. But in recent years, as the Department 

 has become increasingly caught up in industrial regula- 

 tion, it has also undertaken studies relating to fleet ration- 

 alization, industrial organization, marketing and social 

 and regional development programs. 



Clearly, the Department's responsibilities extend well 

 beyond the management offish and fish habitat; and, as I 

 have suggested throughout this report, its responsibilities 

 for such matters as licensing, regulating access, fleet 

 development, assessing enhancement and other de\elop- 

 ment plans, regulating sportfishing and designing Indian 

 programs all need increased attention. These problems 

 call for expertise in economics, busine.ss organization and 

 social science. It is therefore important that the Depart- 

 ment maintain expert staff in these fields to provide the 

 analysis and advice required to guide its program devel- 

 opment. In this regard, the serious erosion of its econom- 

 ics staff in recent \ears is disturbing, particularh in view 

 of the attention that now needs to be devoted to improv- 

 ing the economic performance of commercial fleets, to 

 evaluating enhancement priorities and to developing 

 opportunities for new fisheries such as mariculture. 



But while the Department must maintain competent 

 slaflT in these other disciplines. I do not recommend that it 

 devote significant staff and budget to research in these 

 fields. The primary need is for guidance in determining 

 ptilicies and priorities arising from initiatives from the 

 Department's management and administrative staflTs. 

 Beyond this, some separate research is sometimes needed 

 on particular questions: later I suggest a need for 

 research into sportfishing values and industrial problems, 

 for example. Such special studies can sometimes be con- 

 tracted out. 



RESEARCH ORGANIZATION 



The Department's organizational and administrative 

 arrangements have tended to isolate its researchers from 

 fisheries management programs. In order to accelerate 

 progress toward the Department's espoused goal of 

 "totally integrated fisheries management,"'" attention 

 must be given to arrangements that will encourage team- 

 work among research scientists, field biologists, econo- 

 mists and managers. 



Presently, research needs that arise out of management 

 problems are passed on informally to the Research 

 Branch through the Director General. The Research 



