Question Period Note: • Northern Cod Reopening of Commercial Fishery (2J3KL)

• On June 26, Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced the management approach for the 2024 2J3KL (Northern) cod fishery, which includes the establishment of a commercial fishery with a Total Allowable Catch of 18,000 tonnes (t).
• The primary beneficiaries of this fishery are coastal communities of Newfoundland and Labrador. This decision provides a majority allocation of over 90 percent of the Total Allowable Catch for the inshore sector and Indigenous groups of the province.
• As with all fisheries management decisions, Fisheries and Oceans Canada carefully considered the science advice, stakeholder views, and socio-economic factors affecting Newfoundland and Labrador’s coastal communities.

BACKGROUND

• In fall 2023, a Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) assessment to review the Northern (2J3KL) cod science framework concluded the stock was in the Cautious Zone of the Precautionary Approach Framework from 2016 to 2021. A stock assessment in March 2024 confirmed Northern cod remains in this zone.
• The Department formally sought the perspectives of the inshore and offshore fleet, the processing sector, Indigenous groups, the Government of Newfoundland Labrador, and non-governmental organizations on an access and allocation approach for Northern cod in the context of a possible re-opening of the commercial fishery. The Department also consulted these groups on a management decision for Northern cod for the 2024 season.
• The subsequent management decision for 2J3KL Northern cod for 2024 established a commercial fishery with a TAC of 18,000t, and includes:
o Approximately 84 per cent of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) to the inshore fleet sector, with 20 percent provided to 2J-based harvesters (Labrador);
o A 6.66 per cent Indigenous allocation equally distributed between the Nunatsiavut Government and Innu Nation;
o A special allocation of 3.33 per cent provided to NunatuKavut Community Council; and,
o A 6 per cent allocation to the Canadian offshore fleet.
• The transition to a commercial fishery in 2024 aligns with other Canadian groundfish stocks that are in the Cautious Zone of the Precautionary Approach Framework.
• The decision considered the results of the most recent stock assessment, perspectives of stakeholders and Indigenous groups, as well as socio-economic considerations.
• Under Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) measures, the Canadian TAC is considered 95 per cent of an overall TAC with the remaining five per cent (947 t) allocated to other NAFO Contracting Parties to be fished outside of Canada’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

BACKGROUND
• Atlantic Mackerel are a schooling pelagic fish that form dense aggregations and stick to a narrow temperature range (7-16°C). They are highly migratory, moving into the Gulf and then northward annually to spawn and feed. Accordingly, Atlantic Mackerel tend to move to Newfoundland waters later in the season relative to other parts of Atlantic Canada.
• Because of this high degree of local aggregations, mackerel are easy to harvest at very low levels and high overall population abundance cannot be inferred from high catches in localized areas.
• The commercial and bait fisheries were closed in 2022, while recreational and Food, Social, and Ceremonial (FSC) fisheries remained open. A limited personal use bait fishery of 470t will be open in 2024.
• The Canadian portion of the Atlantic Mackerel stock (predominantly NAFO subareas 3 and 4) is in the Critical Zone of the precautionary approach framework.
• The 2023 stock assessment showed that the spawning stock biomass (SSB) for mackerel declined to its lowest values in 2021 and 2022 (40 per cent and 42 per cent of the Limit Reference Point; LRP), relative to 79per cent and 56 per cent of the LRP in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
• The age structure remains truncated and this erosion has increased over time. There were very few fish over age 5 in 2021 and 2022 (3 per cent or less).
• The available evidence indicates the stock rebuilding potential is currently limited by a truncated age structure, low recruitment, and high predation pressure.
• In response to industry concerns about predation, DFO Science conducted an investigation of predation pressure on mackerel by various predators in Canadian and US waters for the 2023 assessment, which suggests an overall increase in predation-induced mackerel mortality over time. Prior to publication, the results of this work were presented to the Atlantic Mackerel Advisory Committee in February 2024. This study has now been published by the department and has gathered media interest.
• Compared to seals, Northern Gannets likely have a larger impact on predation induced mortality of mackerel (annual consumption by Northern gannets estimated to be between 11,000 – 23,000 over the last 10 years).