$10 Million to Improve B.C. Fishing

Angling opportunities are expected to improve in B.C.'s fresh water lakes, as $10 million has been allocated to the Freshwater Fisheries Society. Under a new agreement with the Province, 100 per cent of revenue generated from fishing licences will directly benefit anglers.

Effective April 1st, $10 million will be transferred to the society for the 2015-2016 term.

Before this agreement was struck, the society received about $3 million annually and used the funding to focus primarily on replenishing smaller lakes. With this additional funding, the society will have the opportunity to work along side provincial biologists to improve fishing in rivers and lakes.

“The 12-year track record of the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC has been exemplary. Their excellence in service delivery, innovation, partnership building and operational efficiencies will only be enhanced by this increased support,” said Steven Thomson, Minister of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations.

These opportunities include facilitating access improvements, stock assessments to inform management decisions, and resources to enhance capacity for compliance monitoring and enforcement on both stocked and wild bodies of water.

“This announcement is good news for the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC and our partners, but it is great news for the province’s freshwater recreational fisheries! This will allow us to invest in recreational fishing opportunities and truly make fishing in B.C. even better,” said Don Peterson, President of Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C.

Surcharges on the licences for the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund will not be affected by the new arrangement. The fund will continue to receive 100 per cent of the license surcharge dedicated to habitat conservation under the new arrangement.