while the number of men engaged in fishing declined 

 four per cent from last year, the amount of invested capital 

 remained the same. The industry continues to upgrade its 

 operations which is demonstrated in the increased average 

 earning per fishery unit. 



Bait fish operations, which provide a valuable service to 

 the anglers across the Province, are continuing to expand 

 as a commercial fish industry. Culturing techniques and im- 

 proved holding facilities have extended the period of sup- 

 ply and improved the quality of bait fish sold. Sales, which 

 are not included in the above statistics, totalled 1.8 million 

 dollars in 1969, which is an increase of 20 per cent from the 

 previous year. The bait fish industry, which is controlled 

 through licensing, increased five per cent to a total of 3,936 

 operations. 



FISHERIES DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS 



In the harvesting of food fishes, the techniques used by a 

 diverse industry, which ranges from the canoe and gill-nets 

 of the northern Ontario fisheries to the electronically equip- 

 ped trawlers in Lake Erie, are not necessarily the most suit- 

 able for the proper utilization of the resource. 



The Department, in conjunction with a cost-sharing pro- 

 gram of the federal Department of Fisheries and Forestry, 

 has initiated and is actively participating in experimental 

 projects designed to develop industrial or fishing techniques 

 which have economic advantage to the commercial fishing 

 industry. Two such projects were continued from 1968, and 

 one new project was undertaken in 1969. 



On Lake Ontario, where in 1968 an exploratory trawl- 

 ing program revealed large concentrations of smelt and 

 alewife, insights into economic and biological aspects of a 

 commercial trawl fishery are being gained. The project was 

 continued for 1969 with emphasis on exploitation of this 

 under-utilized resource. Again, a Lake Erie trawler and 

 crew were contracted. From early August, 1969, until mid- 

 March, 1970, over 300,000 pounds of fish were caught in 

 132 hours of towing time. The average catch rate during 

 a period from December to March near Toronto was nearly 

 5,000 pounds per hour. 



The daily catch rates varied greatly depending on the 

 area fished, time of year that fishing was done, and trawl 

 type. Little difficulty was experienced in selling the fish. On 

 the basis of the consistently good catches made during the 

 winter in western Lake Ontario, and the prices received for 

 the fish, a decision was made that trawling could be profit- 

 able during at least part of the year. Plans to allow a maxi- 

 mum of three vessels to operate experimentally during 1970 

 are underway. These operations, which are to receive no 



financial support from the Department, may well be the 

 beginning of a trawling fishery in Lake Ontario. 



A three-year project of financial assistance to the industry 

 was terminated in 1969 with the completion of a fish meal 

 plant using fish-processing waste material and fish unsuited 

 for food. The plant, which operated on a production basis 

 for nearly nine months in 1969, produced 1,450 tons of 

 meal. The meal, which was shown to be as high in quality 

 as marine sources, supplies a need for high-quality protein 

 in poultry or animal feed formulae. Information gained from 

 this project has shown that fish meal plants are capable of 

 operating efficiently and add materially to the economy by 

 utilizing material which would otherwise be wasted. 



The third program supported by the Department in 1969 

 was the development of a suitable bulk handling technique 

 for smelt on Lake Erie. Traditionally, the handling of large 

 volumes of fish in small boxes resulted in large labour and 

 material costs. The new system, conducted in co-operation 

 with elements of the Lake Erie commercial fishing industry, 

 uses large-capacity boxes designed for mechanical handling 

 from the boat deck through road transport to the processing 

 plants. The process proved successful in operation and has 

 shown substantial cost benefits as well as improvements in 

 the quality of the fish. With minor modifications, this tech- 

 nique could be used in other parts of the Province. 



COMMERCIAL FISH MANAGEMENT 



The Commercial Fish Unit is vitally interested in the de- 

 velopment, protection, and use of the renewable water 

 resources in the Province. The establishment of commer- 

 cial fisheries is intended to serve desirable conservation and 

 economic purposes. Operations are allowed only on the 

 resource base that is capable of sustaining biologically and 

 supporting economically. 



Licensing policy, through sound biological management, 

 is aimed at strengthening the industry by limiting entry and 

 withdrawing redundant fishing privileges. 



Management of the fisheries involves keeping in equilib- 

 rium three ecological forces — the fish, the environment, 

 and man. An ecological approach to conservation implies 

 that management objectives should be to develop or to 

 protect the environment in order to provide the greatest 

 yield in optimum habitat for man. Exploitation of fish popu- 

 lations necessitates fish management. Rates of exploitation 

 are regulated by various restrictions on catch which con- 

 stitute a final potential means for sound management mani- 

 pulation of fish populations. Restrictive measures are 

 directly related to fishing pressure and to the vulnerability 

 of the species in the waters under consideration. 



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