Southwest Lobster Science Society
Terms & Conditions
WHAT TO EXPECT DURING THE PROGRAM & AT-SEA SAMPLING:
Clients of SWLSS never need to hail-out.
Each license holder may be asked to take a fisheries technician (tech) once per season;
The SWLSS scheduler will share the contact information (phone numbers / email) of the captain to the tech, and vice versa, in order to arrange deployment time & location (wharf);
SWLSS makes great efforts not to interfere with the fishing activity of the crew. Before the tech boards, it is helpful for the captain to arrange a small work station for the tech on the port side of the boat near the banding table (opposite side of the boat from the hauler);
The tech will sample a certain number of traps per trawl at regular intervals. The contents from each sampled trap will be placed in a tote by the deckhands then passed to the tech at his station. This allows the tech to stay out of the way and the fishing activity is not slowed;
The captain is required to provide the tech with the depth of each trawl / string;
The captain is required to allow the tech to record the GPS coordinates for each trawl / string. This is required by DFO’s sampling protocol and is the same for SWLSS or any other group doing bycatch data collection;
You may be asked to complete a short evaluation on the tech's trip;
All private information provided to SWLSS is kept confidential.
WHAT WE EXPECT OF OUR CAPTAINS:
Treat the fisheries technician with respect as their role is to collect industry-led science data for the benefit of our fishing communities;
After contacted by SWLSS, ensure that you communicate with the tech at least 1-2 days prior to leaving the wharf;
Provide clear instructions on how to locate your wharf (if a smaller, unmarked wharf) and your boat (if you berth at a larger wharf);
SWLSS reserves the right to remove anyone from the program if they are uncooperative or if any captain or crewmember is verbally and/or physically abusive to any SWLSS staff member;
Registration fees are non-reimbursable.
If you have any questions regarding the bycatch monitoring pilot, please contact your fishermen’s association or the SWLSS office at 902-881-2684. Thank you.