overfishing

Duclos attends fish ecology talk by B.C. exchange student at QHS

Cassandra Kerwin, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

cassandra@qctonline.com

Ava Zielinski, a visiting student at Quebec High School (QHS) from Hornby Island, B.C., gave a memorable presentation in front of fellow students and Québec-Centre MP Jean-Yves Duclos to raise awareness of the devastating impacts of overfishing on Pacific herring stocks.

QHS participates annually in the YMCA Student Exchange Program supported by Heritage Canada. This year, they partnered with Hornby Island Community School (HICS), on Hornby Island, off the east coast of Vancouver Island. Twenty QHS students travelled to Hornby Island from March 3 to 10, while 10 HICS students visited Quebec City from May 1 to 8. During this visit, Zielinski, whose father is a sea captain, gave a presentation about the Pacific fishing industry.

The Pacific herring is a small silvery fish, measuring on average 33 cm in length and weighing about 405 grams. The herring has been fished for centuries by the Japanese and Pacific Coast Indigenous people for its roe, oils and meat. It spawns in estuaries and coves, like those found along the Georgia Strait be- tween Vancouver Island and mainland British Columbia.

“Being a visitor from the traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation, I would like to start my presentation by acknowledging that we are on the unceded territory of the Wendat First Nation,” said Zielinski. “Hornby Island is one of the few remaining and largest places where the Pacific herring still spawn.” She then displayed a time-lapse map of the Georgia Strait, showing the rapid decrease of spawning zones. In early March, the dark turquoise waters of the strait transform into milky turquoise as over six million eggs per square metre are laid, attract- ing various species of whales, birds and mammals. As a result, only two of the 20,000 eggs laid by each female Pacific herring make it to adulthood. Hornby Island holds an annual Herring Fest to celebrate this natural phenomenon; the most recent edition, the ninth, ran from March 13-15.

Since the early 17th century, the roe of the Pacific herring has been a highly popular delicacy in Japan. Due to overfish- ing in the 1950s, the industry collapsed in Asia, creating opportunities for B.C. fishing families, like the Zielinskis, to make a living. “There are some intensive industrial fisheries for herring on Canada’s west coast,” said Zielinski. “These are very wasteful fisheries. They catch thousands of tons of herring, but only a small amount for human use. Most are used for pet food, fish farm food and garden fertilizer. There are other less wasteful ways to get the roe, including traditional First Nations ways, like letting herring spawn on kelp or tree branches.

“There may be concern that pausing the herring fishery will cause people to lose their jobs,” said Zielinski. “Many jobs depend on healthy herring populations, like other commercial fisheries, sport fishing and tourism. So you could say that protecting herring protects jobs.” She continued, “Our big ask is to help us pause the industrial Pacific herring fisheries to allow its populations to rebuild. Please help us advocate for our cause to the federal Fisheries, Oceans and Coast Guard minister, Joanne Thompson. I also encourage you to speak to my Member of Parliament, Gord Johns.”

Following the presentation, Duclos congratulated Zielinski for her work and her courage.

He then turned to the students to ask for their input and solutions. They mentioned that fish harvesters may be able to rotate their fishing zone from year to year, establish a weight limit or find less wasteful ways of fishing. They also spoke about developing different industries like tourism, to allow the community to thrive.