Angling: a P.E.I. tradition and multi-million dollar industry

Thousands of Islanders played hooky — pun intended — from work yesterday, a long-held P.E.I. tradition of being an angler for at least one day a year.

• Anglers enjoy P.E.I.'s recreational fishery opening day
• P.E.I.'s 2016 recreational fishing season casts off

They're fishing for brook trout — P.E.I.'s primary freshwater sport fish — also known as speckled trout or sea trout. They're also catching rainbow trout and perch. Any salmon caught must be released. 

"It's something they remember from their childhood, and they want to carry that on and they want to introduce their children to it," said Rosie MacFarlane, freshwater fisheries biologist with P.E.I.'s department of Communities, Land and Environment.  

The province sells 8,000 to 10,000 recreational fishing licenses each year at $10 each. Children under 16 don't need a license, and the fee is waived for those under 18 or over 60. Anglers also need a Wildlife Conservation Fund license, which is $20, or $13 for seniors. So for most, fishing licenses total $30 per year, no matter if you fish one day or 100. 

"If you compare that to the cost of a movie and popcorn, it's pretty reasonable," MacFarlane laughs. 

Where the money goes

The province reaps only about $50,000 to $60,000 annually from fishing licenses — since youth and seniors don't have to pay, and the conservation fund is administered by a separate organization — and that money goes back into general revenue, said MacFarlane. 

The real value of angling is in the spinoffs, she points out. 

"People tend to underestimate the value of fishing," she said.

"They see someone going out with a bucket or worms and a rod, and they don't consider that that person had to put gas in the vehicle to drive there, and may have purchased a new rod, or rubber boots, or a boat and a motor and all of those other things."

National studies suggest angling is worth $6 million to $7 million a year to P.E.I., MacFarlane said. So, "the direct and indirect expenditures are quite considerable," she said. 

Many non-residents make P.E.I. a fishing destination, MacFarlane reveals.

"Some of them even, they plan their vacations every year to P.E.I. based on the fishing," she said. "It really works well for them because some of the best fishing we have is at the time of the Festival of Small Halls, for instance. I see the same people here every year." 

Province spends money too 

The province provides money to watershed groups to improve fish habitat. The watershed groups also tap into other types of funding worth hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. 

P.E.I. also has a $45,000 annual contract with Abegweit First Nation to grow trout and salmon, that MacFarlane said have been successfully released into Island streams and rivers.

Government also has a $60,000 budget to maintain and repairs dams where many anglers fish. The structures are aging, MacFarlane said, and need expensive upgrades. The province is always looking to partner with non-profit groups for such work. 

Cultural tradition

Angling is a cultural tradition with historical significance, said MacFarlane.

"Imagine a long, cold winter when you've been eating a lot of salt fish or salt pork — and in the spring how important it was for people to get out and catch fresh fish, aside from the recreational value of it. So it's always been something that's been much anticipated," MacFarlane said.   

There is an opportunity to fish for free on P.E.I.: you don't need a license on the Victoria Day long weekend. There's also a cheaper 5-day family fishing license available after May 1. 

P.E.I. has extended the angling season on some rivers into mid-November.