Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessment Done Pursuant to Subsection 23(1) of the Act: SI/2021-32
Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 155, Number 14
Registration
SI/2021-32 July 7, 2021
SPECIES AT RISK ACT
Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessment Done Pursuant to Subsection 23(1) of the Act
P.C. 2021-596 June 17, 2021
His Excellency the Administrator of the Government of Canada in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, acknowledges receipt, on the making of this Order, of the assessment done pursuant to subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act footnote a by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) with respect to the species set out in the annexed schedule.
SCHEDULE
Endangered Species
Fish
Bass, Striped (Morone saxatilis) St. Lawrence River population
Bar rayé population du fleuve Sant-Laurent
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order.)
Proposal
The Order acknowledges receipt by the Administrator of the Government of Canada in Council (the Administrator) of the assessment with respect to Striped Bass, St. Lawrence River population, done by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) in accordance with its functions under paragraph 15(1)(a) of the Species at Risk Act (SARA), and as required under subsection 23(1) and section 24 of that Act.
Objective
The objective of this Order is for the Administrator, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, to acknowledge receipt of the assessment done pursuant to subsection 23(1) of SARA by COSEWIC with respect to the wildlife species set out in the annexed schedule to the Order.
Background
The purpose of SARA is to prevent wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct; to provide for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated, endangered, or threatened as a result of human activity; and to manage species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened. COSEWIC is established under section 14 of SARA, and its functions are set out in section 15 of SARA. Among other functions, COSEWIC provides the Minister of the Environment with assessments of the status of wildlife species that it considers to be at risk.
In November 2019, COSEWIC reassessed the status of the original St. Lawrence River population of Striped Bass — one of three distinct populations in Canada — and concluded that this population is extinct. The last known original St. Lawrence River Striped Bass was caught in 1968, and the population of Striped Bass that historically lived in the St. Lawrence River is gone, the victim of overfishing and habitat degradation.
Implications
Given that this species is already on Schedule 1 of SARA (the List), the Administrator has the following options with respect to Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River population), on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment:
- (a) accept the assessment and remove the species from the List;
- (b) decide not to remove the species from the List;
- (c) refer the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration.
Contact
Julie Stewart
Director
Species at Risk Program
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
200 Kent Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E6
Email: SARA_LEP@dfo-mpo.gc.ca