Commercial catch reporting

New Fishery Notice copied below describing harvest logs for fishermen. Looks like DFO are attempting to tidy up or modernize the catch and fishing activities information gathering system.

This is probably looked on as one of those constant hassles by fishers who already think they are over-regulated. Unfortunately for steelhead this Notice has little real impact....as it doesnt matter if catch stats are transmitted via phone, satellite, or carrier pidgeon if the numbers are not verified for accuracy or validity.
DFO really has no idea of the number of steelhead killed as bycatch in all the various fisheries. Even they dont believe the numbers submitted by commercial fishermen for steelhead. Maybe that's why steelhead numbers arent posted on-line by DFO...they just arent accurate enough to be relevant and without independant monitoring or observers this wont change anytime soon.

Category(s): COMMERCIAL - Salmon: Gill Net
COMMERCIAL - Salmon: Seine
COMMERCIAL - Salmon: Troll

Subject: FN0441-Commercial - Salmon: Commercial Catch Reporting In the Pacific Region For 2009

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For 2009-2010, the vessel master must maintain a harvest log of all harvest
operations as a condition of licence as in past years. A harvest log means the
record of fishing activities required to be kept under the conditions of
licence and applies to both hard copy (paper) versions and electronic (E-Log)
versions unless otherwise specified. Commercial salmon harvesters will be
required to provide in-season and post-season reports of their catch and record
fishing details in the harvest log. To meet the licence conditions to maintain
a harvest log, commercial harvesters may enlist the services of an approved
salmon catch reporting service provider authorized by the Department.
Archipelago Marine Research (AMR) is currently the only service provider that
has been authorized for 2009-2010.

As an alternative to enlisting the services of a salmon catch reporting service
provider, Fisheries and Oceans in the Pacific region is offering an electronic
logbook solution (E-Log) to commercial salmon fishers to meet their license
conditions for the 2009 salmon fishing season. Commercial harvesters using an E-
Log as their official harvest log will not be required to phone in their catch
and other fishing information, maintain a paper log book, or make arrangements
with the catch reporting service provider.

While there is no charge for the E-log software application, commercial
harvesters interested in using an E-Log will require their own computer with
Windows XP or Vista operating system and at least 512 megabytes of RAM memory.
Commercial harvesters will also require their own communications system with a
satellite modem (2 options), satellite telephone or a cell phone (with a data
package).