Small Boat Fishery

Landing Bonus

In 2007 SABRI introduced a landing bonus to assist Fishers in the region in light of high fuel costs and the failure of other fisheries such as the whelk, toad crab and rock crab, total investment was $57,000.

Whelk

SABRI has been helping small boat fishermen offset their costs of trucking and bait by providing them with subsidies.  Carroll's Fisheries in Cook's Harbour purchases the whelk and ships it out to be processed.  The amount of whelk caught in SABRI's region continues to increase as more and more fishermen become involved.

Mackerel

Since 2003 SABRI has been investing into the mackerel fishery in providing funds to purchase twine and partnering with local Fishermen to have traps fabricated. This proved to be a very successful venture as it provided the gear necessary for Fishermen to be able to catch a large enough quantity of mackerel to entice a buyer to come in and purchase the product. In 2007, SABRI was successful in accessing funding in the amount of $14,000 from the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture and SABRI invested an additional $8,000 to purchase more twine to again improve opportunities to make this a successful fishery. SABRI also purchased mackerel reels which willbe tested in the fishery in the upcoming season.

Sea Cucumber

The third year of science work was completed to determine the viability and sustainability of a Sea Cucumber Fishery in the region. Two local harvesters became involved in this fishery in 2005 to harvest sea cucumber over a five year period in order to provide the science work needed. In the previous two years the Sea Cucumber harvested (approximately 200,000 pounds each year) was processed locally at Carroll’s Fisheries in Cook’s Harbour however in 2007 markets were not good and only the amount required for the science work was harvested. SABRI & DFA invested $7,320 into this initiative in 2007.