Fall season for P.E.I.'s wild oyster fishery starts after delay

Wild oyster fishermen on P.E.I. are back on the water after post-tropical storm Dorian caused delays to the start of the fall season.

Fisheries and Ocean Canada shut down shellfish harvesting areas across the Maritimes after high levels of bacteria were found in the water.

After testing by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, parts of P.E.I.'s harvesting areas were reopened on Sept. 15 with the remainder opening on Sept. 18.

The president of the P.E.I. Shellfish Association, Bob MacLeod, said fishermen were only allowed to start fishing on Thursday morning.

"There were two or three areas that didn't pass in time for the season to open so the Department of Fisheries felt as though that if they held everything back it would keep other rivers from being over-fished," said MacLeod.

"They felt that to keep it even, they hold us back until the second water test was done."

Fishermen got on the water for the first time on Thursday, MacLeod said, four days after the official start of the season.

'Catches down'

MacLeod said that the spring season hadn't been very successful either.

"Everyone got through it and hoped for a better fall but ... catches down in this river," MacLeod said.

He said usually there are a lot more dories on the water for the start of the fall season, but not this year.

"All we can do is keep trying, I guess."

'Very poor'

That meant some fishermen were working longer hours to make up for lost time, made more difficult by the fact some fishermen are finding fewer oysters.

Allan Coughlin said he has been fishing around P.E.I. for 40 years.

"Very poor compared to last year," said Coughlin. He estimates that he had only gathered four boxes so far. Last year at this time he had 14.

"They don't seem like they grew good, I don't think, and there are more dead ones than there were other years."

Other fishermen are finding the same thing on the second day of the fall season.

Blair Jeffery, who has been fishing between Cascumpec and Souris for the past 45 years, said compared to last year "they were down about half."

"It's just a little harder to make a living, you have to work harder and put in more hours for less money."

Jeffery said, despite the lower harvest numbers so far, they're not discouraged.

"Just keep going. Keep pounding through and hopefully it will all come out in the wash somewhere."

The fall wild oyster season typically ends on P.E.I. at the end of November.

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