Those who applied to the first intake of the DFO’s new commercial salmon licence buy-back program will soon find out whether they were selected.
Introduced last December, the program is just one part of a $647 million initiative to help recover salmon populations on the west coast.
Known as the Pacific Salmon Commercial Licence Retirement Program, the measure was made available to some 1,300 licence holders in BC.
It aims to provide all holders of troll, gillnet, or seine commercial licences seeking to exit the industry with fair market value for their licences.
Those who applied by the February 28th deadline will receive word on whether or not their offer was accepted via the mail in the coming days.
Anyone whose offer was accepted will have until June 23rd to submit a signed copy of a relinquishment agreement to the DFO.
Indigenous communal licence eligibility holders are not eligible for the program, but can apply to a licence alternation program.
That program provides funding to help holders shift their licences to non-salmon fisheries, and acquire training and new equipment.
Information on the Licence Retirement Program can be found at this link, and information on the Indigenous Alternation Program can be found here.
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