2M OVhRMI U 



SIS on large-scale artificial enhancement works until ilic 

 success of those facilities already built cm he assessed. 



The nianagenicnl of hahitat, tishmg ami cnliancenicnl 

 are interdependent, and ! propH.)se measures to integrate 

 them more closely. The success of these activities 

 depends, in turn, on iniprovenicnts in regulating access to 

 the fisheries, the subject ot Parts III and IV. 



\fa\inu/iiiu tht* Benefits of Ri*Mmrce Use 



The fish of the Pacific coast are exceptionally valuable, 

 and competition for the available catches is intense. 

 Salmon bring high prices in the commercial fishery, they 

 generate excellent sporthshmg opportunities, and for 

 Indians they provide traditional food and cultural sup- 

 port. To ensure that the resources are used in the most 

 beneficial way, account must be taken of these differing 

 economic and social benefits. 



By far the largest catch is taken in the commercial 

 fisheries, but the industry has been allowed to develop in 

 such a way that the potentially high returns are being 

 dissipated in grossly overexpanded fleets and unnecessar- 

 ily high costs of redundant fishing capacity. In all of the 

 major commercial fisheries, and especially in the salmon, 

 herring and halibut fisheries, the major challenge today is 

 to rationalize the fleets to the available resources. 



Far too many commercial fishing privileges have been 

 issued and, through subsidies, the government has 

 encouraged fleets to expand so that they are now a con- 

 tinuing threat to proper management and conservation 

 and the major obstacle to improved economic perform- 

 ance of the industry. To rectify this most serious failure 

 of past policies, I have proposed fundamental reforms in 

 the present obsolete and incoherent licensing systems. In 

 Chapters 7 and 8 I recommend a policy framework for 

 modern commercial fisheries, aimed at keeping fishing 

 capacity in balance with the resources available, encour- 

 aging the fleet's structure to develop efficiently, providing 

 security to fishermen and vesselowners, enabling the gov- 

 ernment to adjust fishing privileges as conditions change, 

 recovering for the public the returns from resources in 

 excess of reasonable returns to fishermen and vesselown- 

 ers, and simplifying administration. 



For the commercial fisheries other than salmon and 

 roe-herring, I propose in Chapter 10 that those fishermen 

 who now operate vessels with limited-entry licences be 

 given new licences that authorize them to harvest a 

 specific quantity of fish, related to the total allowable 

 catch for the fishery. These licences, and all new quota 

 licences, should carry explicit lO-year terms. In addition 

 to facilitating fisheries management, this will encourage 

 fleet rationalization and permit relaxation or abolition of 

 many of the intricate regulations now imposed on vessels, 

 gear and fishing times. 



1 or the nuicli more complicated salmon ami roe- 

 hernng fisheries, I propose, in Chapter 9, new limited- 

 entry licences with l()-year terms, .sjiecifying the gear 

 authorized. I al.so recommend policies for dealing with 

 the contentious problem of allocating the catch among 

 competing sectors of the fleets. I propose that the cur- 

 rently excessive licen.sed capacity in these fleets be 

 reduced by one-half over a 10-year transitional period, 

 and that this process be facilitated by a voluntary licence 

 retirement program financed jointly by the industry and 

 the government. 



My recommendations include a variety of other 

 improvements in the regulation of access to resources. I 

 suggest that licences that provide access to groups of spe- 

 cies or stocks that are fished and managed separately be 

 abolished in favour of more specific privileges, and that 

 licences should apply to defined fishing areas. I propose 

 more consistent licence fees and royalties related to the 

 value of the fish, and that new licences be issued by com- 

 petitive bidding. I recommend that revenues from royal- 

 ties and bonus bids for new fishing privileges in the 

 salmon and roe-herring fisheries be directed to cover 

 costs of retiring licensed fishing capacity and to finance 

 new enhancement. And I suggest that the several forms 

 of direct and indirect subsidies now provided for new 

 vessel construction be abolished. 



In addition, I advise that provisions be made for 

 accommodating development of the fledgling mariculture 

 industry and for cautious experiments in ocean ranching 

 for salmon. And I recommend an entirely new adminis- 

 trative structure for issuing licences, processing appeals 

 and retiring excess licences, thereby separating these 

 important responsibilities from those relating to resource 

 management. 



My proposals for licensing commercial fishing and fleet 

 rationalization are far-reaching, but the present arrange- 

 ments are grossly inadequate, and their legacy of failure 

 to promote orderly development of the primary fishing 

 industi7 necessitates fundamental reforms. 



Economic Development and Growth 



The commercial fisheries of the Pacific coast have hith- 

 erto failed to achieve their economic potential mainly 

 because of excessive fleet development. In Chapter 13 I 

 have examined other aspects of the industry's organiza- 

 tion, relating to its ownership, control and competitive- 

 ness. The historical pattern of control of fishing fleets by 

 processing companies has been weakemng and, from the 

 viewpoint of the public interest in industrial organization 

 and competitive markets for fish, this is desirable. To pre- 

 vent any reversal of this trend, however, and to forestall 

 any other excessive concentration of fishing privileges, I 

 recommend strict limits on the permitted holdings of any 



