Challenges Facing Ontario's Fisheries Resource

Challenges, Causes and Consequences

Declining aquatic ecosystem health and loss of fish habitat have contributed to the loss of fish. People have not always conducted their activities with the well-being of future generations in mind. There are numerous examples where our use of land, air and water has degraded the health of aquatic ecosystems. Some of the following issues require solutions on a global scale, whereas others can be dealt with at the local level. For example:

• Global climate warming, due to an increase in the "greenhouse effect" of the atmosphere, threatens to increase water temperatures, lower lake levels in summer and reduce baseflow in rivers.
• The direct and indirect disposal of municipal, industrial and agricultural wastes into lakes and rivers has degraded
  water quality, and has contaminated lakes, rivers, fish and other life forms.
• Poorly-designed shoreline and watercourse developments have destroyed wetlands and other nearshore fish habitat with significant impacts on fish populations and other aquatic organisms.

Stakeholder conflicts

People rely on the fisheries resource to satisfy different needs.

• they may fish for food or recreation, or both
• they may have been granted the legal right to fish for subsistence or ceremonial purposes
• they may derive their employment and income from fish
• they may simply wish to observe fish.

All the people of Ontario are stakeholders in the fisheries resource.  This carries with it the responsibility for stewardship.

Demand for Ontario’s fisheries resource

Based on long-term trends, the demand for fish and fishing opportunities remains high, in part due to the growth of population centres, increasing affluence, more leisure time, and the continuing demand for high-quality fishing opportunities to draw tourists to the province.

A major cause of the reduction in the numbers of fish is overharvesting. Seemingly insignificant losses of local fish populations accumulate and lead to an overall decline in the resource.

Supply limitations

The supply and distribution of fish varies greatly across the province, and access to fishing is restricted in some areas by geography, accessibility or private land ownership.

Underlying causes

The under-valuation of the resource   Traditionally, people have viewed aquatic ecosystems, including fish, fish habitat, and water, as free common property. Those sectors of society that do not appreciate the value of these resources may be more inclined to waste or abuse them.  Aquatic biota need to be recognized for their social and economic values and also as a barometer on the state of our environment.   Incomplete protection   Legislation and regulations have not always provided adequate protection for fish communities and their habitat.  Legislation may be incomplete or may become outdated or ineffective.   Ineffective management institutions   The mandate for resource protection and management is shared among federal, provincial and municipal agencies. Fragmentation of management and protection responsibilities has sometimes made it difficult to resolve resource management issues.

Insufficient knowledge

There is often a lack of comprehensive knowledge about the state of the resource and new knowledge has not always been effectively communicated to resource managers, other agencies and the public.

Overharvest

This occurs when the demand for fish exceeds the supply in a waterbody.  This is most prevalent in southern portions of the province but is not restricted to the south alone.

Consequences

The issues and underlying causes cited above can result in serious consequences:

Biological and ecological impacts

• Unique genetic material is irreversibly lost when fish populations are reduced or eliminated. This loss of "biodiversity" hinders rehabilitation efforts and increases ecological instability.
• Contaminants accumulate in fish, impairing their reproduction and survival, as well as making them unsafe for humans to eat.
• Exotic species can become established in degraded systems and prey on, or compete with, native species. Some exotic species, such as sea lamprey and zebra mussels, have little economic value and cause a direct or indirect loss of revenue as highly-valued fish species are negatively impacted.

Social and economic impacts

Declining aquatic ecosystem health results in lost opportunities for society to derive benefits from the fisheries resource. Loss of benefits can be direct (e.g., an unhealthy environment, contaminated food, loss of jobs and income) or indirect (e.g., tourist operators would suffer from the loss of a healthy, high quality fisheries resource).