BC Sport Fishing Regulations Amendments

Summary#

This is a proposed set of changes published on March 18, 2023 by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to amend the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996. The changes would turn several long-standing licence conditions into regulation, add new gear and marking requirements, and make some offences able to be ticketed later. The public could comment for 30 days after publication (until April 17, 2023).

What it does#

• Prohibits possession of female Dungeness, red rock and king crab. The department says it will seek a ticket fine of $200.00 plus $50 per crab over the limit (minimum $250.00) if the offence is added to the ticketing rules later.
• Requires the use of barbless hooks in the tidal portion of the Fraser River. A future ticket fine of $500.00 is proposed.
• Requires biodegradable “rot cord” in recreational shrimp and octopus traps that have netting (this is already required for crab traps). A future ticket fine of $500.00 is proposed.
• Requires buoy lines for recreational traps to sink or be weighted so they stay below the surface. A future ticket fine of $250.00 is proposed.
• Requires trap buoys or tags to show the operator’s telephone number (in addition to their name). A future ticket fine of $250.00 is proposed.
• Sets basic escape-panel and gear-marking requirements for recreational traps (e.g., specific twine and minimum opening sizes).
• Notes that these offences would be added to the Contraventions Regulations at a later date so they can be handled by ticketing rather than court in most cases.

Who's affected#

• Recreational fishers in British Columbia’s tidal waters, especially those who use traps for crab, shrimp or octopus. There were about 328,000 tidal water sport fishing licence holders in 2019–20, with roughly 164,000 normally engaged in trap fishing and 44,193 to 54,700 involved in shrimp trap fishing.
• Guides, lodges and other businesses that serve recreational fishers. The government says most already follow the practices and will see little extra cost.
• Boaters, swimmers and other water users: sinking buoy lines aim to reduce entanglement and propeller incidents.
• Enforcement officers and the justice system, because moving rules into regulation would allow ticketing instead of court prosecutions.
• Indigenous harvesters: the proposal says it would not affect harvesters fishing under communal licences or rights protected by section 35 or modern treaties.

Why it matters#

• Conservation: banning the retention of female crabs and requiring rot cord aims to protect breeding populations and reduce “ghost fishing” from lost gear.
• Species protection: barbless hooks in the tidal Fraser are intended to reduce harm to White Sturgeon that move between fresh and tidal waters.
• Safety: sinking buoy lines reduce the risk of swimmers or boaters becoming entangled and of lines fouling propellers.
• Enforcement and cost efficiency: putting these measures in the regulations would let officers use ticketing (if adopted later) instead of court prosecutions, which the government says saves time and money.
• Small, mostly one-time costs for recreational fishers are expected. The department estimates total one-time compliance costs over 10 years of about $2.64 million (present value), with the rot-cord changes accounting for roughly $2.36 million and the buoy-line weights about $0.28 million (annualized at about $0.38 million). These are government estimates and actual costs will vary.