Hereditary chiefs of four First Nations on the Saanich Peninsula demanded Wednesday that the federal government immediately ban commercial herring fishing in the Salish Sea.

In a historic full-dress public gathering – the first in 40 years – Wsanec hereditary chiefs signed a declaration at Tulista Park in Sidney saying continued fishing threatens the extinction of Pacific herring, an essential keystone species to their way of life and the broader health of the Salish Sea, including salmon, halibut, killer whales and other species they call “parents.”

With the opening of food and bait herring set to begin around Qualicum on Nov. 24, chiefs say continued openings by Fisheries and Oceans Canada have decimated herring stocks over decades and a moratorium is necessary to give the herring time to recover.

“This may be the last opportunity to stop the collapse of this species,” said Tsartlip Nation Hereditary Chief Paul Sam Sr. (Telaxten). “We need to give herring time to recover so they can once again be fished sustainably, like my great-grandfather did. »

Hereditary chiefs — including Simon Smith Sr. (Lescim), Tsartlip; Alvin Williams (Telwomet), Pauquachin; Vern Jacks (Xalate), Tseycum; Eric Pelkey ​​​​(Wickinem), Tsawout; and Vernon Harry (Sxaliye) – also issued a territorial declaration for their homelands, which includes the southern Gulf Islands and areas around Saanich Inlet.

It emphasizes the “absolute rights and title of the Wsanec people to the land and water… which can never be violated by the federal or provincial government.”

Pelkey ​​said the territorial declaration is a reminder that hereditary chiefs should play a greater role in decision-making because they hold knowledge “across generations.”

He said the territorial declaration will be presented to the federal government and fisheries.

“They need to recognize who the true leaders of our territory are and recognize our traditional way of governance,” Pelkey ​​said. “This went on for thousands of years and when the government imposed the Indian Act, they imposed elections on our communities that no longer recognized hereditary chiefs. »

First Nations have both elected and hereditary chiefs, the latter often occupying symbolic roles within their communities, but without real voting power when it comes to important decisions.

But Pelkey ​​said hereditary chiefs can and should have influence, especially when it comes to critical issues like dwindling herring stocks.

“This is the first time in a long time that we’ve brought the hereditary chiefs together,” Pelkey ​​said. “And now we’re starting to organize and get recognition for other hereditary chiefs in our communities because people have been so trained to recognize Indian Act chiefs that they forget about hereditary chiefs who have knowledge in their families.

Pelkey ​​said a ban on commercial herring fishing has won support from the Lummi peoples in the Gulf Islands, as far north as Denman and Hornby Islands, and even across the border in the Washington State.

Historically, herring were abundant in the Salish Sea, but their numbers have seen a drastic decline since commercial fishing intensified in the 1930s, according to Wsanec leaders.

Although climate change contributes to their decline, hereditary chiefs point to “unsustainable fishing practices” as the main controllable factor.

Several areas, such as Cowichan, have already completely lost herring spawning, with one of the last remaining spawning grounds, near Hornby and Denman Islands, in jeopardy under currently proposed fishing quotas.

Although small spawning grounds were recorded in Esquimalt Harbor last spring, there has not been a significant spawning event in the south of the island in decades.

Jim Shortreed, of the Victoria-based Herring Conservation and Preservation Society, said Pacific herring had taken a terrible beating in the Salish Sea.

He said the most recent significant declines in herring populations have been in the southern Gulf Islands. “They started intensive fishing in 2014 and by 2020 there were no spawning herring, and there still aren’t.”

Shortreed said DFO noted significant spawning in the Qualicum area last spring, “and so opened a 7,000-ton harvest for subsistence and bait fishing…six years of this type of harvest has destroyed all the Ganges herring. Will this happen at Qualicum? The data says so.

Last year, DFO recorded 90,000 tonnes of herring returns and spawning in the Salish Sea and is now forecasting the same amount for next spring, Shortreed said, adding that figure is down from 129 000 tonnes from ten years ago. “The trend is downward; every year it’s less.

Shortreed said allowing the destruction of herring stocks would have impacts including on whale watching and Chinook salmon fishing tourism. “It is very useful to leave the herring in the water to feed bigger fish and bigger tourism opportunities.”

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the hereditary chiefs’ call for a ban.

In its integrated fisheries management plan for this year, DFO said herring have been an important commercial fishing species in British Columbia for more than 100 years. Herring products are sold primarily to Japan and, to a lesser extent, China and the United States, although in recent years some fishermen have faced increased competition and falling international demand.

There are three main herring fisheries in the province, according to the BC Seafood Alliance.

Kelp spawn fishing in February or March involves harvesting only the herring eggs attached to the kelp strands after spawning.

Subsistence and bait fishing occurs in the fall and winter when herring begin to migrate inshore to overwinter in shallow coves to spawn. Seine fishing is used when the concentration of fish is highest.

The roe herring fishery is the most important and occurs when herring congregate to spawn from late February to late March. Opening dates for this fishery using gillnets and seines are announced once eggs have reached optimal quality.

In recent years, commercial fishing has been limited to Prince Rupert, the Central Coast and the Strait of Georgia due to lower abundance levels in other areas and cautious management, the alliance said.

The Strait of Georgia, between Vancouver Island and Vancouver Island, is where the biomass of herring populations is highest, and fishing generally occurs in the middle of the island, around the Qualicum beach. The majority of herring is landed at French Creek.

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