Lobster harvesters in southwest N.S say deal with Indigenous groups is being abused

Lobster harvester associations in southwest Nova Scotia have withdrawn support for an arrangement that authorizes four First Nations in the area to implement their treaty right to fish for a moderate living.

On Thursday, fishing groups claimed the "interim authorization" approved this year by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) contains a change that allows moderate livelihood traps to be fished by non-Indigenous harvesters who lease commercial lobster licences held by First Nations.

"It's a clear breach of good faith between the fishing communities of southwest Nova Scotia and the federal government," said spokesperson Colin Sproul of the Bay of Fundy Fishermen's Association.

The claim was explicitly denied in a Facebook post Thursday night by the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi'kmaw Chiefs that said the associations "continue to perpetuate misinformation, increasing violence and tension for our harvesters on the water."

"These fishing associations that do not operate on a rights-based system must be held accountable for their continued rhetoric and discriminatory social influence."

The four First Nations in the Kespukwitk district, as the area is called by the Mi'kmaq, hold 38 communal commercial lobster licences. It's not known how many are rented out to non-Indigenous harvesters.

DFO did not respond to a request for comment.

The industry groups said Michael Leonard, director of Indigenous fisheries management for DFO's Maritimes region, said during a briefing on Wednesday that an option known as stacking, or allowing one boat to fish under two licences, is taking place.

"Today there is moderate livelihood access stacked with communal commercial fisheries in lobster fishing district 33 [on the province's south shore] with non-Indigenous people on board the boat operating the fishery. That totally flies against the fundamental principle of the deal that we were asked to support," Sproul said.

Sproul also speaks for the Brazil Rock Lobster Association, Coldwater Lobster Association and Scotia Fundy Inshore Fishermen's Association.

The assembly post says otherwise.

"Trap allocations cannot be stacked on non-designated vessel(s) or with other allocated access including food, social and ceremonial and commercial fisheries," the post said.

The assembly says what it calls a treaty rights protected lobster fishery is for Mi'kmaq only, with conservation measures that include wharf-side monitoring and mandatory reporting using an electronic log book.

The interim authorization announced last week by DFO approved 5,250 moderate livelihood traps to be shared between the Wasoqopa'q (Acadia), Annapolis Valley, Bear River and Glooscap First Nations. across lobster fishing areas (LFA) 33 and 34, which run from Halifax to Digby and LFA 35 in the upper Bay of Fundy, where there is a limit of 1,000 traps.