*Time sensitive* Friday is the last day to submit public input!
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is considering changes to the Salmon Allocation Policy that would send licensed anglers to the back of the line when it comes to salmon fishing. If our right to fish is lost, it will be lost forever.
Concerned Canadians can email their objections and suggestions to DFO at [email protected]
*At the bottom of this email, you will find an example letter that can be copied and modified as needed. Please take the time to send a response!
The deadline to respond is January 23, 2026.
Learn more here: fishingrights.ca
For more information, go to: https://bcwf.bc.ca/salmon/
Example email for response to DFO:
To: [email protected]
Subject: Objection to DFO Proposal Eliminating Salmon as a Public Resource
January 22, 2026
To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing to express my strong objection to proposals—supported by some First Nations—that Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) eliminate the foundational principle that salmon are a public resource, managed for the benefit of all Canadians, in its revised Salmon Allocation Policy (SAP).
For centuries, the Common Property Resource principle has served as the foundation for fair and sustainable resource management in Canada. Tracing back to the Magna Carta of 1215, it acknowledges that salmon are not owned by any one group but are held in trust by the federal government for the benefit of all Canadians, both now and in the future. The current SAP supports this principle by promoting conservation, ensuring broad public access, and maintaining transparency in the allocation of resources among recreational, commercial, and Indigenous fishers.
Eliminating the common property principle would disrupt this balance by shifting stewardship from a federally mandated, conservation-oriented approach to one where access is controlled by a single interest group. This change risks transforming fishing into an exclusive privilege instead of a shared right, potentially leaving non-Indigenous Canadians last in line for a resource traditionally held in common trust. Such a shift could erode public confidence, challenge centuries of legal tradition, and create significant divisions among different user groups.
I urge DFO to uphold its responsibility to all Canadians by retaining the Common Property Resource principle in the new SAP. Salmon must remain a publicly managed resource to ensure sustainable fisheries, national unity, and equitable access for all Canadians. Abandoning this principle would be a grave mistake with lasting consequences.
Sincerely,
(insert sender’s name)
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