OPINION: Rebuilding fisheries is about more than fish — it’s about our future
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BY: Rebecca Schijns
Topics: Rebuild Ocean Abundance
Rebecca Schijns, Fishery Scientist, Oceana Canada, originally published on SaltWire,
Picture this: it’s 2035. Canada’s coastal fishing communities are thriving. Harbours are bustling with activity, supporting jobs, tourism, and local businesses. Families are building their futures on the stability of the ocean’s abundance. Ocean ecosystems are flourishing, creating a vital balance that sustains life below the surface and feeds millions above it. Canadians are more connected than ever to the vast waters that define our nation.
Fisheries Rebuilding
This vision isn’t just a hopeful dream — it’s entirely in our reach. But to make it real, we need bold action — and we need it now.
In 2019, Canada modernized the Fisheries Act, introducing legal provisions to rebuild depleted fish stocks. Globally, similar laws have driven remarkable recoveries. For example, the United States transformed fisheries into economic powerhouses by strengthening its Magnuson-Stevens Act. Yet, here in Canada, five years after the Fisheries Act update, progress has been dishearteningly slow. Without swift change, the thriving future we could create will remain out of reach.
The core problem
The issue is clear: fish stocks must be formally listed under the Fisheries Act to benefit from its rebuilding provisions. Today, only 30 out of nearly 200 stocks are listed. Of the 12 new rebuilding plans anticipated, just two have been published. At this pace, it will take 16 years to list all depleted stocks — time we simply don’t have. Overfishing, biodiversity loss, and the accelerating impacts of climate change demand urgent action.
The cost of delaying
The consequences of inaction are painfully clear. Take capelin, a small but mighty forage fish critical to the marine food web. Critically depleted stocks like capelin, which still lack protection under the Act, continue to be overfished. Despite its population being just nine per cent of its historical abundance, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) allowed 15,000 tonnes to be harvested this year. This is a staggering oversight for a species that underpins the survival of many larger fish, seabirds and marine mammals and provides nutritious food for local people.
Contrast this with stocks already protected under the Fisheries Act. Atlantic mackerel and southern Newfoundland cod, for instance, benefit from science-based rebuilding plans that are beginning to show results. The difference is stark: protected stocks are set up to recover; unprotected ones face mismanagement.
Even more troubling is DFO’s premature decision to reopen and increase quotas for the northern cod commercial fishery. Once the cornerstone of coastal communities, this stock is barely above critical levels and struggling to recover due to insufficient prey. This move ignores decades of scientific advice, risks undoing hard-won progress, and erodes public trust in fisheries management. Meanwhile, the phased reopening of Acadian and deepwater redfish fisheries, guided by robust science, shows what’s possible when recovery is prioritized.
New approach needed
When DFO fails to list stocks, it undermines accountability and weakens Canada’s commitment to ecosystem-based management. This includes sidelining Indigenous Knowledge Systems, which are vital to ensuring equitable and sustainable practices.
The rebuilding plan for the herring ecosystem in Haida Gwaii, developed in partnership with the Haida Nation, demonstrates the transformative potential of pairing Indigenous knowledge with Western science. This collaborative approach not only aims to restore ecological health but also respects Indigenous rights and cultures. It must become the standard, not the exception, for fisheries management.
Stakes are too high
Other nations have shown that rebuilding fisheries works — and pays dividends. After updating its fisheries law, the United States rebuilt 50 stocks and increased fishers’ revenue by 54 per cent in just four years. Europe nations are adapting to climate change and protecting marine biodiversity with ecosystem-based strategies. Canada, with its vast oceans and history of fishing, cannot afford to lag behind.
DFO must list all remaining depleted stocks under the Fisheries Act by next year and ensure robust rebuilding plans are in place for every critical stock by 2027. Evidence, not politics, must drive decisions. Transparency, inclusivity and precaution must guide the process.
Rebuilding fish stocks isn’t just about having more fish. It’s about the future of our coastal communities, the resilience of marine ecosystems, and Canada’s ability to withstand a changing climate. The Fisheries Act has the potential to transform our oceans and coastal economies — but only if we have the courage to use it.
By 2035, Canada’s fisheries could symbolize resilience, prosperity and our renewed relationship with the ocean. The question is, will we act before it’s too late?
