132 



Conservation and Equity 



I have referred to the two principles of the Treaty, conservation and equity. The 

 United States and Canada are obligated by Article III, paragraph 1 (a) of the Treaty to 

 conduct their fisheries and their enhancement programs, so as to "prevent overfishing and 

 provide for optimum production". This obligation to provide for conservation of the 

 fisheries is the first-stated principle in the Treaty. The second-stated is the equity 

 principle, which is reflected in Article III, paragraph 1 (b): The Parties are to conduct 

 their fisheries and enhancement programs, so as to "provide for each Party benefits 

 equivalent to the production of salmon originating in its waters". 



The conditions associated with implementation of the two principles of the Treaty 

 are found in paragraph 3 of Article III: 



In fijlfilling their obligations . . . [with respect to conservation and equity], 

 the Parties shall cooperate in management, research and enchancement . . . [and] 

 shall take into account: 



(a) the desirability in most cases of reducing interceptions; 



(b) the desirability in most cases of avoiding undue disruptions of existing 

 fisheries; and 



(c) annual variations in abundances of the stocks. 



There is absolutely no support in the foregoing conditions or in any other 

 provisions of the Treaty and MOU (nor in the U.S. interpretations thereof) for the 

 Canadian view that the conservation obligation is conditioned on implementation of the 

 equity principle. Also significant is the fact that there are additional factors which affect 

 the implementation of equity, but which do not affect the implementation of conservation. 



The distinction between the equity and conservation obligations is reflected in the 

 terms of the MOU and the US interpretation of it and the Treaty. In the MOU, the 



