Province says it's pitching support program for P.E.I.'s oyster industry to Ottawa 'this week'

Prince Edward Island's fisheries minister says his department is putting the final touches on a pitch to Ottawa to lift up the province's oyster industry, and that the proposal should be in front of the federal government "by the end of this week."

Zack Bell said the department has put together a package of programs to help wild oyster fishers, growers, processors and more.

P.E.I.'s oyster industry was rocked by the deadly parasite MSX, which was first found in Island waters in July 2024. Another disease called dermo was discovered this past summer. Neither poses a risk for human consumption, but both can be fatal to oysters.

"A lot has gone into this. It's a very fluid situation, you know, again my heart goes out to everyone affected in the industry, whether it's the fishers, the growers, the processors," Bell said.

"They've been dealing with some tougher times, most recently in the last couple of weeks."

People who work in the oyster industry have spoken out for months about how MSX and dermo have rattled their livelihood. Some say they're facing financial ruin.

Action, in the form of financial supports, is something they've asked for repeatedly.

The province did set up a $2.72-million Aquaculture Contingency Fund.

The province described that initial investment in an emailed statement as "critical steps to understand and contain the issue while laying the groundwork for recovery." The funding was targeted toward toward research, testing and surveillance.

Ottawa had also announced roughly $1 million in funding for three projects to strengthen the Atlantic shellfish fishery. That included $613,964 to help UPEI establish a rapid-response testing system for the industry, and another $61,200 to develop a strategy toward creating a research cluster for shellfish health.

Bell didn't disclose a specific dollar amount for the amount he'd like to see come from Ottawa, saying it's been a moving target.

"The main reason is it's a continual day-by-day process to figure out what that number is," he said.

"It's been a little bit tough because, again, people are being affected in different thresholds, so the biggest part is trying to figure out that program if it is going to be beneficial to fisher X or fisher Y, or grower X or grower Y."

Bell said he'd like to see those supports get approved from Ottawa and be in place "as soon as possible."