RESOURCE PRODUCTS DIVISION 



Resource Products Division is divided into four branches 

 and their subordinate sections with responsibilities as 

 follows. 



Commercial Fish and Fur Branch: Regulation and utiliza- 

 tion of commercial fish and fur; production of adequate 

 commercial supplies of fish and fur; legal and physical 

 access to current supplies of commercial fish and fur for the 

 industry; and the establishment and co-ordination of pro- 

 grams for the use of renewable, natural resources by 

 Indians. 



Resource Economics Branch: Economic analyses, 

 marketing, production statistics, industrial development, 

 and library services. 



Timber Management Branch: Tree production, silvicultural 

 operations, tree and seed improvement, equipment develop- 

 ment, tree distribution, Agreement administration, assess- 

 ment, and forestry extension service. 



Timber Sales Branch: Inventory of forest resources, air 

 photo library, map and photo service. Crown management 

 plans, company management plans, sale of timber, and 

 wood measurement. 



COMMERICAL FISH AND FUR BRANCH 



COMMERCIAL FISH SECTION 



Ontario's commercial fishermen harvested 55,037,078 

 pounds of food-fish and bait-fish in 1971 and received 

 $8,812,431 from their sale. It is estimated that the catch 

 contributed about $18 million to the provincial economy. 

 The food-fish catch of 42.8 million pounds was seven per 

 cent below the 1970 catch. Market prices for fish products 

 increased during 1971 . 



Nearly 90 per cent of all fish landed in Ontario are taken 

 in the Great Lakes. The dominant species are yellow perch 

 and smelt in Lake Erie, lake herring in Lake Superior, lake 

 whitefish and chub in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, and 

 yellow perch and white perch in Lake Ontario. The 

 northern inland fisheries continue to be the major source of 

 yellow pickerel, lake whitefish, northern pike and sturgeon. 



Over 183.7 million minnows were harvested andsoldfor' 

 $ 1 .9 million during the year. 



During 1971, 1,268 licences were issued for the harvest 

 of food-fish and 3,449 for bait-fish. 



The total capital investment in the commercial fishing 

 industry was SI 2.4 million at the end of 1971. 



The extent of mercury contamination was identified in 

 an intensive sampling and analysis program in 1971. The 

 results confirmed the need to close certain lakes and 

 indicated that a partial restriction of fishing is necessary in 

 a number of other lakes. It was found that fishing could be 

 restored for certain species in areas previously closed. 



INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT 



The objective of the Federal-Provincial cost — shared 

 Industrial Development Program is to develop more 

 efficient and economical fishing and processing techniques. 



A Lake Erie trawler and crew were contracted to fish 

 from December through March. Sufficient quantities of 

 coarse fish were taken to demonstrate the feasibility of a 

 trawl fishery which would harvest a combination of fish 

 species at different times of the year. A similar trawling 

 experiment was conducted from December through 

 January in Lake Superior. It indicated that trawling for 

 herring could be feasible if weather conditions were 

 favourable. 



Technical upgrading and gear development projects in 

 the northern inland fishery were expanded this year. 

 Different types of trap-nets were tested for their ability to 

 harvest whitefish selectively in recreational waters. 

 Trap-netting techniques were demonstrated. 



A combined trap-net demonstration and product 



marketing survey was carried out in the Rainy Lake area. 

 Burbot were taken in trap-nets under the ice, filletted, 

 packaged as "Freshwater Maria", and distributed with a 

 questionnaire to 300 grocery store customers. Most 

 customers found the product appealing, and grocery outlets 

 were interested in obtaining more. 



Two projects completed in 1969 have resulted in 

 substantial benefits to the industry. One was a plant to use 

 fish-processing wastes and fish unsuitable for food; during 

 1971, it produced 1,100 tons of fish meal with a total 

 revenue of $130,000.00. The second was the development 

 of bulk-handling techniques which saved an estimated 

 $87,400.00 in the handling of 12 million pounds of smelt 

 during 1971. 



SUPPORT FOR INDUSTRY 



The program under The Fisheries Loans Act provided 

 financial assistance to commercial fishermen where fishing 

 was prohibited because of mercury pollution. Loans were 

 made to 102 licensees during 1971. 



A second program of financial support, administered by 

 the Ontario Development Corporation and the Northern 

 Ontario Development Corporation, assisted commercial 

 fishermen to restructure or relocate their fisheries to 

 harvest uncontaminated fish. During 1971, 58 loans 

 totalling $354,000 were authorized. 



Financial aid was also extended to commercial fishermen 

 and processors whose fish had to be removed from the 

 commercial market due to mercury contamination. 



The Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation, which in 

 1969 became the buying and selling agent for freshwater 

 fish in northwestern Ontario, continued to provide stability 

 and efficient service. In its program to reduce over-partici- 

 pation, it caused some packing and processing facilities to 

 become redundant to its operations. The incidence of 

 redundancy was not as high in northwestern Ontario as 

 elsewhere. All claims for compensation received during the 

 year were settled. 



The Department provided field service for the Fishing 

 Vessel Insurance Plan, a low-cost insurance program 

 administered by Environment Canada. 



FUR SECTION 



The activities in fur management continued to expand and 

 emphasize the beaver because of its ecological and 

 economic importance. Beaver work included aerial surveys, 



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