Canadian fisheries officers have completed their annual summer patrol of the North Pacific aboard the Sir Wilfred Laurier, finding "significant" levels of illegal shark fin harvesting, prohibited dolphin harpooning and destruction of evidence.
The efforts are part of an international cooperative effort to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Fisheries and Oceans Canada held a virtual press conference on Thursday, Aug. 14, to present the trip's findings, along with firsthand accounts from fishery officers and video shot during the voyage.
All told, the joint Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)-Canadian Coast Guard operation boarded 41 international fishing vessels and detected 39 violations on 11 separate boats. The Sir Wilfred Laurier sailed for 56 days out of Victoria, B.C., docking in Osaka, Japan, along the way.
This year's mission was the first time it was combined with a DFO air patrol to identify violations. Air surveillance videos from this effort shared with the media show large de-finned sharks being thrown overboard and piles of shark fins on decks.
Other findings included the poaching of protected dolphins and salmon for use as shark bait.
Under international cooperative agreements, the crew aboard the Sir Wilfred Laurier could pull up alongside a fishing vessel, message the home country and board for an inspection.
This involved sending a party over on a small boat or zodiac, climbing aboard with a security team leading the way, then having inspectors come aboard to look for violations related to everything from illegally caught fish to poor paperwork.
This could be exciting at times, said fishery officer Blair Thexton, speaking via video from Victoria. Thexton was on the Sir Wilfred Laurier and involved in the inspections.
"Swells are going up and down, so coming alongside one of these very large vessels, looking straight up, perhaps 30 to 40 feet in the air, and have this rope ladder to climb up 鈥� it was all about timing and communication," Thexton said.
Violations are reported back to the fishing vessel's home country for follow-up by local authorities. Wrongdoers can face fines, fishing bans, suspension of port privileges, and even arrest in their home countries.
The mission was undertaken as part of an agreement between Pacific countries to enforce international fishing regulations. Representatives from each country meet to ensure the violations are dealt with appropriately.
This was the third of these missions for the DFO, and the first to involve people from four nations on one boat.
"This is one of the most expansive law enforcement missions in the world, delivered by six agencies from four nations, from a Canadian patrol vessel," said Sean Wheeler, the chief of international enforcement at the DFO.
While the ship cruised the high seas, boarding fishing vessels, the DFO aircraft flew out of Hokkaido, Japan and was able to cover far more territory.
DFO compliance officer Patricia DeMille was involved in that effort. Speaking by video feed from Campbell River, she said the air patrol was able to inspect 366 vessels, identifying 51 potential violations.
