Sunday November 2, 2025 | LANGFORD, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Proposed salmon fishing closures were the subject of a petition presented in the House of Commons by Cowichan-Malahat-Langford MP Jeff Kibble last week.
Kibble presented a petition on behalf of the BC Recreational Fishing Association urging the Minister of Fisheries to reconsider new proposed salmon fishing closures across the south coast of British Columbia.
Evidently there would be significant impacts on the recreational fishing industry and several coastal communities, as stated by Kibble in the House.
The DFO decision is expected next month, said Kibble.
At risk are over 9,000 direct jobs, more than $600 million in GDP, and over $400 million in direct household income in BC, says the Conservative MP.
Request for emergency debate:
In particular, the impact would be felt in Port Renfrew — to the extent that Kibble called for an Emergency Debate “about the crisis facing British Columbia” on October 22, 2025 in the House of Commons.
He said that Port Renfrew would lose up to $12 million per year “effectively ending Port Renfrew”.
“According to DFO’s own statistics, BC could lose over 9,000 jobs, 300,000 salmon anglers, and over $400 million in household income per year,” said Kibble in his request for an emergency debate.
There was no debate granted, but two days later in the House, Kibble said that there is “a contraction in government policy that poses harsh restrictions on the recreational fishing industry despite health Chinook salmon stocks according to DFO’s 2025 Salmon Outlook”.
Abundant stocks:
“Chinoook stocks on the south coast of British Columbia are forecast to be abundant or near abundant,” said Kibble in his presentation of the petition.
Other impacts on the whales:
The petitioners state that the goal of the closure is to protect the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKWs, aka orcas). “But the problem is not a lack of salmon it’s a flawed management model that refuses to account for the entire ecosystem. Recreational fishing has almost unmeasurable impact on salmon stocks. Federal funding to coastal hatcheries which is already in adequate is being cut, and federal funding to fight Zebra mussels and fight invasive salmon-killing species has ended.
The massive impact of invasive predation on salmon stocks is also apparently being ignored.
In recent weeks in TV media, a few incidents of injuries to whales have been made public — including one by a passenger ferry and one by a whale-watching vessel. Apparently in some instances there isn’t time for the vessels to slow down.
Stakeholders:
The petitioners want to see all relevant stakeholders brought together — including the recreational fishing industry — to complete a meaningful consultation to establish effective science-driven action.
They’re asking for a plan for recovery of the SRKW’s while also sustaining a multi-million dollar recreational fishing industry that coast communities depend on.
“I will keep fighting for healthy fish stocks, the killer whales, recreational fishing, and coastal communities,” said Kibble in a Facebook post today.
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