Vol. 148, No. 9 — April 23, 2014

Registration

SOR/2014-85 April 4, 2014

FISHERIES ACT

Regulations Amending the Ontario Fishery Regulations, 2007

P.C. 2014-362 April 3, 2014

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, pursuant to section 43 (see footnote a) of the Fisheries Act (see footnote b), makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Ontario Fishery Regulations, 2007.

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE ONTARIO FISHERY REGULATIONS, 2007

AMENDMENT

1. The definitions “border waters area” and “fisheries management zone” in subsection 1(1) of the Ontario Fishery Regulations, 2007 (see footnote 1) are replaced by the following:

COMING INTO FORCE

2. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

The Ontario Fishery Regulations, 2007 (OFR) regulate fishing in the province of Ontario. Currently, the OFR do not reflect the new filing date of the fisheries management zone and border waters area maps that are incorporated by reference within the Regulations. Further, a reference to the Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary found in the OFR’s definitions of fisheries management zone and border waters area is inaccurate and may cause confusion. Amendments to the OFR’s definitions of fisheries management zone and border waters area are required to address these issues and ensure greater accuracy and clarity for Canadians.

Background

Under the OFR, recreational fishing is managed based on 20 fisheries management zones and a border waters area. Maps detailing the locations of both fisheries management zones and the border waters area are incorporated by reference within the OFR. These maps were produced by the Province of Ontario and are available in both official languages by way of the Office of the Surveyor General of Ontario. A summary of those maps can be found on the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources’ Web site. Pursuant to Ontario’s policy at the time that the OFR came into force, only the English versions of the maps were formally filed with the Office of the Surveyor General of Ontario. This policy has since changed, and the French and English versions of both the fisheries management zone and border waters area maps were both formally filed by Ontario’s Office of the Surveyor General on December 5, 2013. As part of the filing process, revisions were made to text within the French maps to correct certain translation inaccuracies; the maps themselves have not changed in any substantive way.

The definitions of “border waters area” and “fisheries management zone” currently found in the Interpretation section of the OFR indicate that the border waters area and fisheries management zones are shown in maps both filed in the Office of the Surveyor General of Ontario and published in the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources’ Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary. However, the maps published in the Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary are only summaries of the official maps filed in the Office of the Surveyor General of Ontario.

Objectives

The objectives of the amendments are twofold. First, the amendments will update the OFR to reflect the new filing date for the English and French versions of the maps incorporated by reference in the OFR. Second, the amendments will remove any reference to the Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary in order to correct the inaccuracy explained above.

Description

The definitions of “fisheries management zone” and “border waters area” in both the French and English versions of the OFR will be amended to reflect the date on which the Office of the Surveyor General of Ontario formally filed the French and English versions of both the fisheries management zone and border waters area maps. The reference to the Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary will also be removed from the definitions.

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this proposal as there is no change in administrative costs to business.

Small business lens

The small business lens does not apply to this proposal as there are no costs on small business.

Consultation

Fisheries and Oceans Canada developed the amendments in consultation with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (the Ministry). The Ministry concurs with the amendments.

Rationale

In keeping with the objectives of the proposal, the amendments will update the OFR to reflect the date on which the English and French versions of the maps detailing both the fisheries management zones and border waters area were concurrently filed on December 5, 2013, with Ontario’s Office of the Surveyor General. Updating the definitions of “fisheries management zone” and “border waters area” will also reduce confusion about where to access the official versions of the maps by removing the reference to the Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary and referencing only the maps filed with Ontario’s Office of the Surveyor General.

The proposed amendments are administrative in nature and there are no anticipated costs. Benefits of the amendment include updating the Regulations to reflect new filing dates and improving clarity on where Canadians can locate the official maps of the border waters area and fisheries management zone on which are referenced in the OFR.

Implementation, enforcement and service standards

The amendments to the OFR’s definitions of fisheries management zone and border waters area will take effect upon registration.

Contact

Froozan Housany
Policy Analyst
Legislation and Parliamentary Affairs
Department of Fisheries and Oceans
200 Kent Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E6
Fax: 613-993-2973
Email: Froozan.Housany@dfo-mpo.gc.ca