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Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993 (SOR/93-54)

Regulations are current to 2024-02-20 and last amended on 2023-06-23. Previous Versions

Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993

SOR/93-54

FISHERIES ACT

Registration 1993-02-04

Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993

P.C. 1993-187 1993-02-04

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, pursuant to sections 8, 43Footnote *, 46 and subsection 87(2) of the Fisheries Act, is pleased hereby to revoke the British Columbia Fishery (General) Regulations, made by Order in Council P.C. 1984-966 of March 22, 1984Footnote **, the Pacific Coast Marine Plant Regulations, C.R.C., c. 822, the Pacific Commercial Salmon Fishery Regulations, C.R.C., c. 823, the Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1984, made by Order in Council P.C. 1984-1405 of April 20, 1984Footnote ***, the Pacific Herring Fishery Regulations, made by Order in Council P.C. 1984-1320 of April 18, 1984Footnote ****, the Pacific Shellfish Regulations, C.R.C., c. 826, and the Tuna Fishery Regulations, made by Order in Council P.C. 1984-2268 of June 28, 1984Footnote *****, and to make the annexed Regulations respecting fishing in the Pacific Ocean and the Province of British Columbia, 1993, in substitution therefor, effective February 24, 1993.

 [Repealed, SOR/2017-58, s. 25]

Interpretation

  •  (1) In these Regulations,

    Act

    Act means the Fisheries Act; (Loi)

    Area

    Area has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007; (secteur)

    bait herring

    bait herring[Repealed, SOR/2022-196, s. 13]

    band

    band[Repealed, SOR/93-334, s. 1]

    barbless hook

    barbless hook[Repealed, SOR/99-296, s. 1]

    beam trawl net

    beam trawl net means a trawl net the mouth of which is held open by a beam or pole that is held horizontally across the mouth of the net while the net is under tow; (chalut à perche)

    bottom trawl

    bottom trawl means a trawl net that is towed along the bed of the water; (chalut de fond)

    corkline to web distance

    corkline to web distance means the shortest distance between the corkline of a gill net and the webbing of the gill net; (distance entre la ralingue et la nappe)

    Department

    Department means the Department of Fisheries and Oceans; (ministère)

    dip net

    dip net means a bag-like net, fixed to a frame to which a handle is attached, that is used to catch fish without enmeshing them; (épuisette)

    drag seine

    drag seine means a net, weighted at the bottom and floated at the top, that is used to enclose an area of water and is then drawn ashore; (senne traînante)

    fish landing station

    fish landing station[Repealed, SOR/2022-196, s. 13]

    fishwheel

    fishwheel means a frame with a wheel to which are attached devices to scoop fish from the water; (filet rotatif)

    food herring

    food herring means herring taken for human consumption but does not include roe herring or herring spawn on kelp; (hareng de consommation)

    gill net

    gill net means a net that is used to catch fish by enmeshing them and that does not enclose an area of water; (filet maillant)

    herring enclosure

    herring enclosure means any type of enclosure used or intended to be used to confine live herring or herring spawn on kelp; (parc à harengs)

    hook and line

    hook and line includes longline and trolling gear; (hameçon et ligne)

    Indian food fishing

    Indian food fishing[Repealed, SOR/93-334, s. 1]

    Inside Salmon Troll Area

    Inside Salmon Troll Area[Repealed, SOR/96-330, s. 1]

    licensed facility

    licensed facility means

    • (a) a facility used by a person who holds a licence issued under the British Columbia Fish and Seafood Act, SBC 2015, c. 14, as amended from time to time, for the purpose of carrying out activities authorized by the licence, whether or not the facility is specifically referenced in the licence; or

    • (b) a vessel in respect of which a licence has been issued under subsection 18(4); (installation autorisée)

    longline

    longline means a line that has a hook or hooks attached to it and that is anchored to the bed of the water; (palangre)

    mesh size

    mesh size means the total length of twine measured along two contiguous sides of a single mesh, including the distance across the knot joining those sides but not including any other knots; (maillage)

    midwater trawl

    midwater trawl means a trawl net other than a bottom trawl; (chalut pélagique)

    non-tidal waters

    non-tidal waters means the waters of the Province other than tidal waters; (eaux sans marée)

    otter trawl net

    otter trawl net means a trawl net the mouth of which is held open by boards of wood or metal or both, referred to as otter boards or doors, while the net is under tow; (chalut à panneaux)

    Outside Salmon Troll Area

    Outside Salmon Troll Area[Repealed, SOR/96-330, s. 1]

    owner

    owner, in respect of a vessel, means the person or aboriginal organization, as defined in section 2 of the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations, in whose name the vessel is registered; (propriétaire)

    Province

    Province means the Province of British Columbia; (province)

    purse seine

    purse seine means a net that is drawn around a school of fish and then closed at the bottom by means of a line passing through rings attached along the lower edge of the net; (senne coulissante)

    Regional Director-General

    Regional Director-General means the Regional Director-General of the Department for the Pacific Region; (directeur général régional)

    registered

    registered means registered with the Department pursuant to section 19; (enregistré)

    ring net

    ring net means a bag-shaped net that is hung on a frame to which a line is attached; (bolinche)

    roe herring

    roe herring means

    • (a) herring found in or taken from the waters of Subareas 6-1, 6-2, 8-13, 8-14 and 8-15 during the period beginning on May 1 and ending on June 30, and

    • (b) herring found in or taken from any waters not referred to in paragraph (a) during the period beginning on February 10 and ending on April 30; (hareng prêt à frayer)

    salmon

    salmon includes steelhead trout; (saumon)

    Salmon Area F

    Salmon Area F means the waters of Areas 1 to 11, 101 to 111, 130 and 142; (secteur F du saumon)

    Salmon Area G

    Salmon Area G means the waters of Subareas 12-5 to 12-16, Areas 20 to 27 and 121 to 127; (secteur G du saumon)

    Salmon Area H

    Salmon Area H means the waters of Areas 12 to 19, 28 and 29; (secteur H du saumon)

    seine

    seine includes a purse seine and a drag seine; (senne)

    shellfish

    shellfish means Mollusca, Echinodermata and Crustacea; (mollusquesetcrustacés)

    Subarea

    Subarea has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007; (sous-secteur)

    surfline

    surfline has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007; (ligne de démarcation)

    tidal waters

    tidal waters means the waters of the Areas set out in Schedule 2 to the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007; (eaux à marée)

    trap

    trap means an enclosure that is designed to catch fish but does not include a trawl net or a purse seine; (casier)

    trap net

    trap net[Repealed, SOR/99-296, s. 1]

    trawl net

    trawl net means any bag-type net that is dragged in the water by a vessel for the purpose of catching fish; (chalut)

    trip

    trip[Repealed, SOR/95-181, s. 1; SOR/99-296, s. 1]

    trolling

    trolling means fishing with a hook or hooks attached to a line that is towed through the water by or from a vessel. (pêche à la traîne)

    validation tab

    validation tab[Repealed, SOR/2013-37, s. 5]

  • (2) A reference in these Regulations to a species or group of species of fish by its common name as set out in column I of an item of Schedule I shall be construed as a reference to the species or group of species of fish whose scientific name is set out in column II of that item.

  • (3) All references in these Regulations to measurements of mesh size, depth, length or any other dimension of a net shall be construed as references to measurements taken when the net is wet.

  • SOR/93-334, s. 1
  • SOR/94-391, s. 1
  • SOR/95-181, s. 1
  • SOR/96-330, s. 1
  • SOR/97-267, s. 1
  • SOR/99-296, s. 1
  • SOR/2003-8, s. 1
  • SOR/2013-37, s. 5
  • SOR/2017-58, s. 26
  • SOR/2022-196, s. 13

Application

  •  (1) Subject to subsection (2), these Regulations apply in respect of the management and control of

    • (a) fisheries in Canadian fisheries waters in the Pacific Ocean and the Province;

    • (b) fishing for tuna from Canadian fishing vessels in the waters of the Pacific Ocean that are not Canadian fisheries waters; and

    • (c) the harvesting of marine plants from Canadian fisheries waters in the Pacific Ocean that are not within the geographical limits of the Province.

  • (2) These Regulations do not apply in respect of

    • (a) sport fishing;

    • (b) fishing from a foreign fishing vessel, as defined in section 2 of the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act;

    • (c) aquaculture or prescribed activities, as defined in the Pacific Aquaculture Regulations, in

      • (i) the territorial sea of Canada off the coast of British Columbia,

      • (ii) the internal waters of Canada off the coast of British Columbia that are not in that province,

      • (iii) the internal waters of Canada in British Columbia, and

      • (iv) any facility in British Columbia from which fish may escape into Canadian fisheries waters; or

    • (d) fishing for marine mammals.

  • (3) Sections 6, 8 to 10, 13 to 15, 22, 24 and 25, and Parts IV to VII and IX do not apply with respect to fishing and related activities carried out under the authority of a licence issued under the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations.

  • (4) and (5) [Repealed, SOR/2003-398, s. 1]

  • SOR/97-247, s. 1
  • SOR/2002-225, s. 9
  • SOR/2003-398, s. 1
  • SOR/2010-270, s. 12

Joined Nets

 For the purposes of these Regulations, where two or more nets are joined together, they shall be considered to be one net.

PART IGeneral Provisions

Import of Fish

 No person shall bring into the Province any live fish of a species set out in Schedule VIII.

Prohibited Fishing Methods

 No person shall

  • (a) fish by snagging or with snares.

  • (b) [Repealed, SOR/99-296, s. 2]

Prohibition Against Molesting or Injuring Fish

 Subject to these Regulations, no person shall molest or injure fish.

Lights Prohibited

  •  (1) No person shall use torches or artificial lights to attract or repel fish unless they are fishing for shrimp with a trawl net or for squid.

  • (2) No person shall use fishing gear that has a flashing light attached to it.

Gill Net Restrictions

 No person shall, in tidal waters,

  • (a) fish with more than one gill net at one time; or

  • (b) except where fishing for herring, fish with a gill net that has any part of the corkline under the surface of the water.

  • SOR/94-391, s. 2

Dip Net Restrictions

 No person shall fish with a dip net

  • (a) the area of the mouth of which exceeds 1 m2; or

  • (b) the depth of which is greater than 1.5 m.

  • SOR/93-334, s. 3
  •  (1) and (2) [Repealed, SOR/94-731, s. 1]

  • (3) [Repealed, SOR/99-296, s. 4]

 

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