|
Environment (Fed) - Fisheries Act. Mowi Canada West Inc. v. Canada (Fisheries, Oceans and Coast Guard)
In Mowi Canada West Inc. v. Canada (Fisheries, Oceans and Coast Guard) (Fed CA, 2026) the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal from a JR dismissal, here brought against "a decision made by the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard (the Minister) on February 17, 2023, to refuse to re-issue aquaculture licenses to salmon farms operating in the Discovery Islands".
The court considers the constitutional division-of-powers of 'fisheries', and here it's "conservation and protection" aspects:[31] It is now well-established that the federal power to legislate with respect to "“fisheries”", found in subsection 91(12) of the Constitution Act, 1867, 30 & 31 Victoria, c. 3 (U.K.) extends not only to the conservation and protection of the resource, but also to the general regulation of fisheries, including their management and control: see Comeau’s Sea Foods Ltd. v. Canada (Minister of Fisheries and Oceans), 1997 CanLII 399 (SCC), [1997] 1 S.C.R. 12 at para. 37; Ward v. Canada (Attorney General), 2002 SCC 17 at paras. 36-41. This is reflected by section 2.1 of the Act pursuant to which its purpose is "“to provide a framework for (a) the proper management and control of fisheries; and (b) the conservation and protection of fish and fish habitat, including by preventing pollution”".
|
