Implications of Mi’kmaq-owned partnership with Clearwater Seafoods
“Lobster Pots” by Steve Bidmead is licensed under Pixabay
When the acquisition of Halifax-based Clearwater Seafoods by the Mi'kmaq First Nations was announced on November 9, 2020, many wondered whether the deal would resolve the long-standing tensions between Indigenous and non-Indigenous fishermen. In October, commercial fishermen burnt down an Indigenous fishery, attacked Indigenous storage facilities, and allegedly assaulted an Indigenous chief. Tensions between Indigenous and commercial fishermen follow a long history of conflict surrounding treaty rights and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ regulations. Both parties have contrasting perspectives on the future of lobster fisheries in Nova Scotia, with Clearwater Seafoods caught in the middle. While the Clearwater acquisition may appear to be a step in the right direction, an analysis of its implications shows that the deal does little to resolve the long-term tensions between the two groups.
Fishing Treaty Rights and their Violent History
The Mi’kmaq, Wolastoqikik, and Passamaquoddy people have their fishing rights acknowledged in the Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1760 and 1761, which was later further protected by section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. The 1999 Marshall decision in the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the Peace and Friendship Treaties and ruled that Indigenous communities only had the right to fish for a moderate livelihood, effectively precluding them from the commercial industry. Indigenous fishermen have interpreted the Marshall decision as granting permission for them to fish for lobster out of season and without a license.
Despite decades of hostility, the dispute has only recently reached national attention. On September 17, the Sipekne'katik First Nation faced violent opposition for launching their own Mi’kmaq-regulated lobster fishery in Nova Scotia. They were prompted by the lack of government action in defining a “moderate livelihood” and the Marshall decision’s lack of enforcement. Beginning over two months before the government-mandated lobster trapping season for non-Indigenous fishermen, the operation of this new fishery angered non-Indigenous fishers, who felt it could affect their own livelihoods and the sustainability of lobster stocks. The fishing season is regulated in order to ensure that the lobster populations reproduce safely and sustainably. Despite the regulated fishing season and other regulations to ensure sustainability, lobster catches declined about 4% in Nova Scotia, from 2016 to 2018. However, the Mi’kmaq fishermen claimed that their fishery was within the “moderate livelihood” definition outlined in the Marshall decision, and was not at risk of affecting sustainability due to its small scale.
Lobster Fishing in Canada
Canada, the world’s largest lobster harvester, supplies 74 thousand tonnes of lobster a year, with Nova Scotia supplying 50% of this harvest. Canada’s fishing industry is a rights-based management system comprising small fishing operations and a few large companies such as Clearwater Seafoods. There are individual quota systems in which participants seek to maximize their portion of the total allowable catches. Fishing licenses are issued by the Federal government and entail a limited fishing eligibility and not a permanent right.
Clearwater Seafoods, the largest shellfish producer in North America, was sold to Premium Brands of British Columbia and a Mi’kmaq First Nations coalition in early November for $1 billion. This acquisition allows for Mi'kmaq fishermen involved with the acquisition to have access to fisheries outside of treaty-based rights that the Marshall decision establishes. The coalition of Mi’kmaq First Nations includes the Paqtnkek, Pictou Landing, Potlotek, Sipekne'katik and We'koqma'q, and is led by the Membertou and Miapukek bands. With the Clearwater acquisition, Mi’kmaq bands would have exclusive access to Clearwater’s offshore lobster licenses in Lobster Fishing Area (LFA) 41. Not only is LFA 41 the largest lobster fishing zone in all of Canada, it is the only lobster fishing area in Canada that operates year-round.
Benefits and Opposition to the deal
In general, this deal primarily benefits the Mi'kmaq coalition involved in the acquisition. According to Ken Coates, a senior fellow at the MacDonald Laurier Institute for Public Policy, this sale is a “transformational moment” since the Mi’kmaq will hold Clearwater’s Canadian fishing licenses within a fully Mi’kmaq owned partnership. This changes the implications of the Marshall decision because Indigenous Peoples will have access to the fishing resource through commercial licenses outside of the Marshall decision’s idea of a moderate livelihood, which only grants constitutionally-protected access through treaty rights. Despite the lack of clarity in the Marshall decision and Clearwater’s commercial acquisition being separate issues, Indigenous ownership of Clearwater Seafoods and its fishing licenses can be a step towards more Indigenous-led access to natural resources. This is especially important when considering that Indigenous Peoples are one of Canada’s most marginalized groups. The acquisition of Clearwater Seafoods will be a “monumental step” towards regaining a self-sustaining economy by providing revenue and employment for the Miawpukek and other bands that are part of the coalition, according to Mi’sel Joe, the Chief of the Miawpukek First Nation. Furthermore, Indigenous-led businesses can pursue reconciliation in Canada by solidifying relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities through working together.
Commercial fishermen in Nova Scotia were vocal in their opposition to Mi'kmaq fisheries and the Clearwater acquisition. They blame Clearwater Seafoods for deflating lobster prices in the region because of the price controls that Clearwater Seafoods exercises in the industry. Furthermore, commercial fishermen are opposed to Clearwater’s monopoly in offshore lobster fishing since it holds all the licenses in the coveted LFA 41. Moreover, the coalition of Mi’kmaq First Nations only includes seven bands and could alienate the bands who are excluded from the deal. Since Clearwater’s fishing licenses were not divided equally among the Mi'kmaq First Nations, there will be an uneven return between the bands who receive the fishing licenses and profit from the commercial sale of lobster and those who do not. Finally, Clearwater Seafoods has a history of conflict with owners of smaller, family-owned fishing companies due to smaller businesses’ concern about increasing fishery privatization and the undercutting of owner-operator fisheries. The deep-rooted tension between Indigenous fishermen and commercial fishermen are exacerbated by the acquisition of a large commercial company by the Indigenous fishermen and the view that Indigenous fishermen just “won” the conflict by adding another player to their side. With the Indigenous acquisition of Clearwater, there is added mistrust from commercial fishermen about the expansion of Indigenous fisheries since a large company can buy up lobster licenses through the First Nations that they previously were not able to as a non-Indigenous company. Fish stocks are viewed as common, so the privatization and corporatization of fishing areas, such as LFA 41, are seen as a concern to smaller businesses who depend on the commons.
Overall, there are positive implications for Indigenous economic empowerment and economic reconciliation between Indigenous Peoples and the surrounding businesses and fishermen. However, the Clearwater acquisition also leads to more tensions between non-Indigenous fishermen and Indigenous Peoples. Not to mention, the possibility of intra-Indigenous tensions between the First Nations bands left out of the acquisition. Furthermore, the acquisition of Clearwater Seafoods has a larger implication on communal fishing resources and fish stocks. Based on an analysis of the advantages and disadvantages, the Clearwater acquisition will have persistent consequences between Indigenous peoples, local commercial fishermen, and corporations and the future of lobster fishing in Canada as a whole.