OIL SPILL EXPERIMENTS CANCELLED AFTER FFAW INTERVENES
July 16, 2024
July 12, 2024
An FFAW demand has been successfully answered as the Union received formal news from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) today the two planned offshore oil spill experiments, postponed in May of last year, are now officially cancelled.
The two oil spill and burn experiments were planned offshore in NAFO fishing area 3L during the summer fishing season and were delayed twice.
FFAW-Unifor opposed the project first in 2020, then in 2021, and again in writing on January 20, 2023. The Inshore Council unanimously objected to the proposed experiments at their winter meeting last year. Today’s welcomed news marks the projects’ only update provided since the indefinite postponement last spring.
DFO stated that in consideration of the FFAW’s concerns, other logistics, budgeting, as well as new federal government priorities, pushing this initiative forward was no longer appropriate.
“We are pleased to see DFO cancel these two misguided experiments. An oil spill, no matter the magnitude, could have unknown implications on the health of the ocean environment. Deliberate spills of this nature would be entirely counterintuitive to the principle of environmental protection,” says FFAW-Unifor President Greg Pretty.
As an organization whose membership relies on the health of the ocean for their livelihood, FFAW has continuously advocated against, under any circumstances, the intentional release of oil for experimental purposes. As project details were presented, commercial fishing and post-season crab surveys would occur in the immediate vicinity of the proposed experiments during the allotted timeframe.
The Union wants to thank the diligent and persistent efforts of staff and the many members who volunteered their time in ensuring their legitimate concerns were effectively prioritized; particularly 3L crab committee representatives and inshore council members.