64 



COMMERCIAL FISHERIES REVIEW 



Vol. 28, No. 7 



Canada 



ATLANTIC HERRING FISHERY 

 CONFERENCE HELD IN 

 FREDERICTON, NEW BRUNSWICK: 



The potential of the herring resource and 

 its importance to the future of Canada's At- 

 lantic fisheries was the theme of the Canadian 

 Atlantic Herring Fishery Conference, held in 

 Fredericton, N. B., May 5-7, 1966. The Con- 

 ference was sponsored by the Canadian Fed- 

 eral-Provincial Atlantic Fisheries Commit- 

 tee. About 25 papers covering every phase 

 of the herring fishery were submitted f or dis - 

 cussion at the meeting. Representatives of 

 the fishing industry, as well as technologists, 

 biologists, and marketing specialists attended. 



Led by the Federal Deputy Minister of 

 Fisheries, Government officials emphasized 

 that Canada was not exploiting its Atlantic 

 herring fishery to full advantage. An expan- 

 sion in the East Coast herring catch from 400 

 million pounds in 1965 to between 1 and 2 bil- 

 lion pounds by 1975 was projected by a Cana- 

 dian economist. He forecast generally favor- 

 able demand for herring products for the next 

 5 years. 



Various aspects of catching, processing, 

 and marketing an expanded herring catch were 

 discussed by other Government and industry 

 representatives. Obviously much of the ex- 

 panded catch would go for industrial uses. A 

 note of caution was injected by several scien- 

 tists as well as by canning interests. They 

 agreed that the resource was underexploited, 

 but said more research was needed in order 

 to predict effects of expanded exploitation 

 and to develop appropriate management prac- 

 tices. (Canadian Department of Fisheries, 

 Ottawa.) 



***** 



PROPOSED INCREASE TO 50 PERCENT 

 IN FEDERAL SUBSIDY FOR 

 ATLANTIC INS H ORE VESSELS: 



An increase in the Canadian Federal sub- 

 sidy for Atlantic inshore fishing vessels to 

 50 percent was to be considered at a meeting 

 in Montreal, April 27, 1966, of Federal and 

 Provincial fishery officials. The Federal 

 Fisheries Minister said there is a need to 

 accelerate the construction of larger inshore 

 vessels (35- to 55-foot class) in order to 

 modernize the fishery. 



Only large steel trawlers 85 feet and over 

 have been eligible for a 50 -percent Canadian 



subsidy. The allowable subsidy for other 

 Canadian fishing vessels ranges from 25 to 

 40 percent. 



Loan facilities for fishermen were also to 

 be reviewed at the Montreal meeting. 



In the field of credit, the major source of 

 financing for Canadian fishermen has been 

 Provincial loan agencies, the Federal Fish- 

 eries Minister said. In order to facilitate 

 lending by such agencies, the Canadian Fed- 

 eral government is prepared to recommend 

 such agencies as lenders under the Fisheries 

 Improvement Loans Act, This action would 

 provide a guarantee to Provincial lending 

 agencies similar to that now provided to banks 

 and credit unions making loans to fishermen, 

 (Canadian Department of Fisheries, Ottawa, 

 April 19, 1966, and other sources,) 



REGIONAL DIRECTOR OF FISHERIES IN 

 THE MARITIMES AREA APPOINTED: 



R. E. S. Homans of Halifax, N. S., has been 

 appointed Regional Director of Fisheries in 

 the Maritimes Area for the Department of 

 Fisheries of Canada, it was announced April 

 18, 1966. He was the successful candidate in 

 a Civil Service Commission promotional com- 

 petition. 



As Area Director of Fisheries, Homans 

 (with headquarters in Halifax) is the senior 

 officer of the Federal Department of Fisher- 

 ies in the Provinces of Nova Scotia, New 

 Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. (Ca- 

 nadian Department of Fisheries, Ottawa, A- 

 pril 18, 1966.) 



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SCALLOP FISHERY DOES NOT INTERFERE 

 WITH LOBSTER SEASON 



IN NORTHUMBERLAND STRAIT: 



No immediate change is planned in the reg- 

 ulations governing the scallop fishery in 

 Northumberland Strait between Pictou County, 

 Nova Scotia, and Kings County, Prince Ed- 

 ward Island, the Canadian Fisheries Minister 

 announced April 21, 1966. The region re- 

 ferred to in the announcement is within Cana- 

 dian Lobster Fishing District 7B. 



Lobster fishermen in the district had 

 voiced concern that scallop fishing would in- 

 terfere with the lobster fishery in the May 

 and June season. They also feared damage 



