Fishermen share

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Nuu-chah-nulth fishermen will get a large share of licences for the sardine (formerly called pilchard) fishery about to start.

Six of the 28 available licences for the fishery will be shared among Nuu-chah-nulth nations. Leaders and fishermen agreed to a profit-sharing arrangement after a special fisheries council meeting held last month at the Tseshaht Cultural Centre.

"The six licenses we received are for 180 tonnes of sardines each, so the combined catch will be around 1,080 tonnes out of a 5,050 tonne coastal quota," said Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council's fisheries program manager Dr. Don Hall.

Ahousaht, Hesquiaht and Toquaht will be given the right of first refusal on the licences, and three non-Nuu-chah-nulth signers will be asked to contract with the provision that they employ at least two Nuu-chah-nulth deckhands each.

The sardine fishery has only recently returned to B.C. waters after a 50-year absence. The fishery was depleted in the late 1940s.

"B.C. fishermen will be fishing the sardine biomass that stretches outside American waters where the bulk of the stock is," said Hall. "But it's large enough that Nuu-chah-nulth nations could see a profit of between $100,000 to $200,000 on their share of the quota," he added.