For immediate release
The striped bass population in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence is out of control
and threatening certain fisheries.
Tracadie, June 9, 2025 – Commercial gaspareau fishermen operating on the Miramichi River are on the verge of giving up. An overabundant striped bass population is making this fishery virtually impossible. In recent weeks, fishermen who are members of the Maritime Fishermen's Union (MFU) have reported that the number of striped bass entering their nets this year is five times greater than last year.
"Our members tell us that last year, they could catch 5,000 bass in their nets. With enormous physical effort and time, they could sort through them and keep only the gaspareau. This year, there can be as many as 25,000 bass in the nets. It has become impossible for them to sort through them. They have to throw their entire catch back into the water. So it's a fishing effort that yields nothing, but the fishermen still have to pay the expenses. There is something illogical and economically unsustainable about all this," explains Martin Mallet, executive director of the UPM.
Gaspareau fishing is a commercial fishery primarily for bait, bringing in nearly $3 million in 2023.
DFO on the wrong track
For several years, the MFU has been pressuring the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to review its approach to scientific research on striped bass. "DFO told us in 2024 that, according to scientific assessments, there has been a decline in the population. It's hard for us to believe that. The species is overflowing its natural habitat, riverside fishermen are catching more and more of them, and our lobster fishermen are reporting an abundance of this fish in their traps, "reports the MFU's executive director." We are also concerned about other issues, such as the impact of striped bass on smelt populations. Fishermen and smelt enthusiasts noticed the absence of this fish in our waters last winter."
The MPU has made recommendations to DFO that inshore fishermen and lobster fishermen be given the right to keep striped bass found in nets or traps for use as bait, to issue a commercial quota for UPM member fishermen, and to review the reference points for a healthy species, taking into account the carrying capacity of the Miramichi River ecosystem.
DFO is not adapting its research and objectives to a new environmental reality. It will take years for this to happen! In the meantime, fishermen and industries are at risk of disappearing. It is high time that DFO's mandate included the economic survival of our communities. The preservation of species and oceans can go hand in hand with the economic viability of our coastal regions," concludes Martin Mallet.
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Information :
Pascale Paulin
Communication, MFU
pascale@mfu-upm.com / (506) 866-3420
