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December 15, 2005: West Van Council seeks a rockfish conservation area

B.C.

Off the hook

By JUSTIN BEDDALL Staff Reporter

Dec 15 2005

North Shore Outlook

West Vancouver council has voted in favour of supporting a plan by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (FOC) to create a rockfish conservation area extending between Lighthouse and Whytecliff Parks .?? a spot that has been popular with marine poachers in the past.

"There is an ongoing poaching problem [at Lighthouse] and at Whytecliff," explained West Vancouver park planner Corinne Ambor. "It's a problem. Rockfish are a popular fish for eating."

FOC has created Rockfish Conservation Areas (RCA) throughout coastal B.C. to try and protect rockfish, which are particularly susceptible to over-fishing because they are slow to reach their reproductive cycle. Rockfish dwell in shallow rocky areas, which make them relatively easy prey for fisherman.

Gary Logan, an FOC officer in charge of the department's rockfish/lingcod sustainability team, was part of a group that made a presentation to West Van council.

During a slideshow, he showed a picture of a fisherman in West Van with his line in the water right in front of a no-fishing sign.

"We're trying to get these areas to rebuild because they've been over-fished," he explained.

The proposed Passage Island Rockfish Conservation Area (which includes the area between the two parks in West Vancouver), would, in effect, ban all hook-and-line fishing in the area.

Ambor said that in 2004, as part of the council-approved Lighthouse Park Management Plan, a recommendation was made to work with the FOC to protect the marine life in the area. The plan noted that, "the greatest immediate threat to these waters come from poaching activities...."

Ambor said the FOC's RCA meets the municipality's goal of protecting marine life in the park areas.

The FOC is planning a second round of public consultation in the New Year.

Logan noted that North Vancouver's Indian Arm is among the list of proposed RCAs because it is also a heavily poached area.

http://www.northshoreoutlook.com/portals-c...