List of Wildlife Species at Risk (referral back to COSEWIC) Order: SI/2021-33

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 155, Number 14

Registration
SI/2021-33 July 7, 2021

SPECIES AT RISK ACT

List of Wildlife Species at Risk (referral back to COSEWIC) Order

P.C. 2021-597 June 17, 2021

His Excellency the Administrator of the Government of Canada in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, pursuant to subsections 27(1.1) and (1.2) of the Species at Risk Act footnote a,

ANNEX

Statement Setting Out the Reasons for Referring the Assessment of the Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis) St. Lawrence River Population Back to COSEWIC

The Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River (SLR) population) is listed as endangered in Schedule 1 to the Species at Risk Act (SARA). The last sighting of an individual of the historical Striped Bass (SLR population) was in 1968. In 2002, Quebec began restocking efforts using fish from a separate population in the Miramichi River. In 2004, COSEWIC assessed the Striped Bass (SLR population) and classified it as extirpated. In 2011, the Striped Bass (SLR population) was added to Schedule 1 to SARA as extirpated. In 2012, COSEWIC reassessed the species and reclassified it as endangered, taking into account stocked fish originating from the Miramichi River. In August 2019, the classification of Striped Bass (SLR population) in Schedule 1 to SARA was changed from extirpated to endangered. At the COSEWIC Wildlife Species Assessment Meeting in November 2019, in an addendum to its 2012 assessment, COSEWIC once again reassessed this population. It came to the conclusion that, based on current COSEWIC guidelines the individuals currently found in the St. Lawrence River are not part of the original SLR population and, therefore, that the 2012 status report erroneously included the individuals from the stocked population. For those reasons, COSEWIC reclassified the Striped Bass (SLR population) as extinct.

The addendum to COSEWIC’s 2012 assessment restricts the information being provided by COSEWIC to information in regards to only the historic population of Striped Bass in the St. Lawrence River and negates conclusions made in 2012 pertaining to the risk status of the introduced fish currently inhabiting the St. Lawrence River or how they may fit into the future population (or “designatable unit”) structure of all Canadian Striped Bass. Because the Governor in Council’s 2011 listing and subsequent August 2019 reclassification decisions pertained to the entirety of the Striped Bass individuals in the St. Lawrence River and the provisions of SARA apply to those individuals, the Minister of the Environment, on the advice of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, has determined that more information is needed on the status of the existing Striped Bass in the St. Lawrence River before a recommendation with respect to the Striped Bass (SLR population) can be made. Therefore, the matter is referred back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is committed to working with COSEWIC on this matter.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order refers the matter of the assessment of the Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River [SLR] population), made by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration, pursuant to paragraph 27(1.1)(c) of the Species at Risk Act (the Act or SARA).

Objective

The objective of this Order is to refer the matter of the assessment of the Striped Bass (SLR population) back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration.

Background

The purposes of the Act are to prevent wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct; to provide for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated, endangered, or threatened as a result of human activity; and to manage species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened. COSEWIC is an independent scientific body established by the Act as the body responsible for, among other things, assessing the status of Canadian wildlife species that COSEWIC considers to be at risk. In assessing a wildlife species, COSEWIC must identify existing and potential threats to the species and either

COSEWIC must carry out its functions on the basis of the best available information on the biological status of the species, including scientific knowledge, community knowledge and traditional aboriginal knowledge.

When COSEWIC completes an assessment of the status of wildlife species in Canada, it provides a copy to the Minister of the Environment.

Implications

Under subsection 27(1.1) of SARA, after receiving an assessment of the status of a species by COSEWIC from the Minister of the Environment, the Administrator of the Government of Canada in Council (the Administrator) reviews the COSEWIC assessment and, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, may

Before making the recommendation for this Order to the Administrator, the Minister of the Environment consulted the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans as the competent minister for the Striped Bass (SLR population). By way of this Order, the Administrator is referring the assessment of the Striped Bass (SLR population) back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration.

The Minister of the Environment, in accordance with subsection 27(1.2) of SARA, will include a statement in the Species at Risk Public Registry setting out the reasons for the decision to refer the assessment of the Striped Bass (St. Lawrence River population) back to COSEWIC. Those reasons are set out in the annex to the Order and will be posted on the Species at Risk Public Registry.

Striped Bass (SLR population) is listed as endangered on Schedule 1 of SARA. The last sighting of an individual of the historical Striped Bass (SLR population) was in 1968. In 2002, the Province of Quebec began restocking efforts using fish from a separate population in the Miramichi River. In 2004, COSEWIC assessed the Striped Bass (SLR population) and classified it as extirpated. Subsequently, in 2011, the Striped Bass (SLR population) was added to Schedule 1 of SARA as extirpated, triggering the SARA prohibitions, recovery planning and critical habitat identification and protection requirements. In 2012, COSEWIC reassessed Striped Bass (SLR population) and reclassified it as endangered. The stocked fish originating from the Miramichi River were considered by COSEWIC to be part of the original SLR population. In response, in August 2019, the classification of Striped Bass (SLR population) on Schedule 1 of SARA was changed from extirpated to endangered. At the COSEWIC Wildlife Species Assessment Meeting in November 2019, in an addendum to its 2012 assessment, COSEWIC once again reassessed this population and reclassified it as extinct. It came to the conclusion that, based on current COSEWIC guidelines, the individuals currently found in the St. Lawrence River are not part of the original SLR population, and so the 2012 status report erroneously included the individuals from the other population, and, as it had been 51 years since an individual from the historical Striped Bass population had been sighted, it was classified as extinct.

COSEWIC’s reassessment only addresses the historic population of Striped Bass in the St. Lawrence River and provides no information on the risk status of the introduced fish currently inhabiting the St. Lawrence River or how they may fit into the future population (or “designatable unit” [DU]) structure of all Canadian Striped Bass. The Minister of the Environment, on the advice of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, has determined that more information is needed on the status of the existing Striped Bass in the St. Lawrence River and, therefore, the Order refers the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration.

Contact

Julie Stewart
Director
Species at Risk Program
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
200 Kent Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E6
Email: SARA_LEP@dfo-mpo.gc.ca