New documentary takes deep dive into 'unique' niche of Great Lakes commercial fisheries in Ontario

A marine researcher from Dalhousie University has taken a deep dive into North America's largest freshwater commercial fishing fleet, in Ontario's Great Lakes, in a new documentary that explores challenges and opportunities local fisheries face in maintaining the industry. 

Last Boat on the Lake tells a character-driven story of commercial fisheries, some of them multi-generational, in the Great Lakes and how much they contribute to the local food chain in Ontario and across Canada, said its creator, Hannah Harrison. 

"When I first came to Canada in 2019, someone told me about the Great Lakes fisheries and I was like, 'Wow, I had no idea,' and as it turns out, I'm not the only one who had never heard of it," said Harrison, an associate professor at the Nova Scotia university.

"Everyone who had gone to Port Dover, Port Stanley or Wheatley and had fresh fish ... had no idea where that fish came from, even though they are sometimes within view of commercial fishing boats themselves." 

The hour-long documentary, which can be viewed free on YouTube by clicking here, follows fishers along Lakes Ontario, Erie and Huron. It was made in partnership with Saugeen First Nation, located on the Bruce Peninsula, and takes a joint look at the Indigenous and non-Indigenous aspects of the fishing industry. 

Harrison, who grew up in a commercial salmon fishing family in Alaska, said she was surprised to see how little Ontarians knew about their locally sourced seafood.  

"When we think about where food comes from, we think of the beautiful agricultural landscapes we have in Ontario, but we also have this really amazing freshwater commercial fishery. Yet, we really don't think about Ontario being a fish place, we think of it as a farm place," she said. 

"It's an opportunity to really appreciate this unique homegrown industry. I felt compelled to rebuild that relationship of what Ontarians know about their local commercial fishery."

Seasonal work, development cause conflicts 

The film also delves into the problems local fishers are having in recruiting the next generation of workers in the hyper-local industry. 

Rick Misner, who's from Port Dover, on the east side of Lake Erie, is among the many fishers featured in the documentary. Misner believes these challenges are partially due to factors like seasonal work and changes to the industry. 

"It's getting harder and harder to find people to come to work because they aren't making a really good living," said Misner, 76, who's been fishing for over six decades. 

"We only work four months of the year and that's all we get in fishing. It's pretty hard to make much of a living in four months."

Misner said another challenge is the changes within fish population due to climate and other environmental factors. Misner's end of the lake catches smelts, which he said have become harder to retain over the last 25 years as their population has "dramatically decreased."

Another theme in the documentary is just how much infrastructure development along coastlines is impacting access to the lakes, said Harrison. Waterfronts, which provide the needed space and utilities for fishermen to unload fish or bring ice onto their boats, are facing pressure to appeal to other industries such as tourism, she added. 

"For example, a fishing family in Port Colborne who delivered fish to the same place for generations told me they came back and found a cruise ship terminal is being built there and they were no longer allowed to deliver," she said.

"That kind of change in what we are prioritizing along our waterfronts can really be a challenge if you really depend on having that safe and reliable access, day in and day out."

Misner said although there hasn't been much disruption in his fishing area, he knows that in other regions like Port Stanley, people are getting closer to the water. With it come complaints of noise and smell, causing conflicts among residents of these communities and fishers.  

"Developers on coastlines want to be close to the water but they want us to change, and that's not always easy," he said. "When you take away the land where boats used to tie, those boats need to find another place to operate out of and exist."

Harrison hopes the documentary helps Ontarians appreciate the value of local fisheries, especially at a time when Canadians are looking to shop and eat local in the face of threatened U.S. tariffs. 

She also urges people to consider how zoning and further development can work in conjunction with commercial fisheries to ensure everyone's interests are met. 

"The vast majority of fish caught in the Great Lakes region is consumed there, and that also includes the U.S. That's something we could really be proud of in Ontario — that we're feeding this part of the world with our own product."