Small craft harbours Pacific Regional Harbour Authority Advisory Committee (PRHAAC)

Record of discussion

October 26, 2022
In person/virtual meeting
Steveston Harbour boardroom

1. Welcome and review of agenda

Terri - Thanked Jaime for allowing the use of the Steveston Harbour boardroom for facilitating this meeting. Terri mentioned how due to the pandemic, meetings have been virtual, however she indicated the importance of having in-person meetings which foster a greater opportunity for relationship building.

2. Review of ROD and action items from
June 30, 2022 meetings

The Record of Decisions had previously been reviewed and approved by PRHAAC members. Terri went over the 4 action items:

1. Ben. M to investigate resources for clean-up of debris in the area which is technically not in our water lot. Reached out to TC already as well as the RD/Province. - In Progress
2. Arian to send out a link explaining the 4 key initiatives under PSSI to provide more background info to the group. - Completed
3. Send over a copy of the maintenance manual to Ben. M – In progress (Arian to follow up with Vahid)
4. To think of a time and venue for next in-person PRHAAC meeting – Completed.

Action item: Arian to follow up with Vahid in regards to obtaining a copy of the old Maintenance Manual and sending it to Ben M.

Action item: Arian to send a copy of the previous June 30th, Record of Decisions to PRHAAC members for their review and information.

3. SCH update

1. Staffing

   Stephanie Hopper has now been permanently appointed as the national Director General of Small Craft Harbours on June 30, 2022.

   Katie Rattan has come back to the Program as the Regional Negotiator on August 1st.

   Stella Xu has returned as IPPA manager on a part-time basis, with Parbinder Kandola supporting leadership of the IPPA team during this transition.

   Four engineering students ended their terms as of August 30th.

   SCH is expecting 5 new Engineering co-op students to join the team in early fall.

2. Budget 2022/2023

   The SCH A-Base budget is $11.5M, which will be used to fund 21 projects in addition to 7 multisite projects.

   For the B-Base, the budget is $29.3M, which will be used to fund 23 projects and multisite projects.

3. SCH Regional Awards

   Winners will be presented at the HAABC Seminar. SCH will be asking the winners of the previous 2 years to just stand up as we call on their names so that they can have a bit of a spotlight on their achievements.

   The group went over the different categories which someone can be nominated for:

   • Individual Achievement
   • Long Standing Service
   • Up and Comer
   • HA Achievement
   • HA Innovation

   Any questions or concerns regarding the SCH distinction awards, members can reach out to Arian Eshfagh at arian.eshfagh@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

4. General
   1. Head lease:

      Terri - SCH Property is prioritizing Headleases that have been in overhold the longest. SCH staff are starting to work with 58 Harbour Authorities to transition them into the new headlease template.

      One of the main changes in the 2021 Headlease template is that monitory ‘rent’ is no longer required, due to the work of the HA being recognized as payment in lieu on its own.

   2. Cranes:

      SCH is currently developing and will soon be implementing a crane policy. Throughout Canada, within other regions, a decision was made to fully divest that liability to harbour authorities. SCH will continue to engage with PRHAAC and HAABC to determine the best possible course of action that will result in the most effective outcome for all.

      The group also concluded that no matter what, even if the cranes were divested to HAs, SCH would still remain liable in case of any incident or emergency. Additionally, each harbour has different cranes with different uses which will be critical to understand for the policy.

      HAABC has initiated a train the trainer program that certifies and educates members in various zones who can then go around other harbours and do the same for other aspiring members wanting to be certified.

   3. AWVRP:

      AWVRP has been approved as a regular program and thus will be receiving funding annually. For this year SCH has 2 AWVRP projects to remove 6 vessels. Its only $250K annually for all across Canada.

      Last year, SCH was able to leverage some of the money that other regions didn’t manage to spend. This year SCH is fully subscribed. SCH has been taking in applications for next year. There are still a few harbours that need still need some vessels to be taken away. Additionally, at the HAABC seminar, both Transport Canada and CCG has been invited to attend and provide a presentation to the group. TC and CCG have asked that groups provide them with input as to what they would like to see included in their presentations.

   4. PSSI:

      SCH recently has held some virtual engagement sessions which provided lots of input and feedback. The Hub locations identified for vessel returning/recycling are:

      • Port Hardy
      • Steveston
      • Port Edward
      SCH is still working on identifying additional gillnet offloading locations, ensuring locations are not far enough apart.

      The program will incentivize owners who return their vessels in the first year so to ensure people do so early on and not create a backlog of late submissions.

      No Money will be provided for gear under PSSI as that can be sold on its own.

      Steveston has been working to hire a Net Coordinator on a fulltime basis who will help with the logistics and management of the Net Recycling Program. This program will assist and closely tie into the work being performed in PSSI.

   5. Ghost gear

      There has been $10M funding for this year but $56M dollars in applications so a lot of demand for retrieval and just general interest among the community around the initiative.

      The initiative funds proponents to retrieve tagged/marked gear, which will then be stored for some time, allowing the owners a chance at reclaiming their gear. This process of recycling reduces waste which would have either been taken to landfills or found its way back into the ocean.

      The Program has been extended for 4 more years.

      SCH Currently has active agreements with Tsehum, Ucluelet, Port Edward.

      Ben wondered how many fishermen recovered their gear?

      Action item: Arian to find out how many fishermen actually came back to recover their gear in Ghost Gear and share with the group.

4. Covid-19

SCH travel is still limited, however, SCH is planning on increasing the volume of travel in the coming months, where Public Health restrictions allow. As the Government, we must ensure that we take the safety of our employees seriously.

DFO has begun to implement a hybrid return to the workplace as of June 1st. SCH staff have been gradually returning back to the office once per week at a minimum). Staff are currently asked to wear masks in all indoor areas of their workplace as well as where social distancing isn’t possible (board rooms, hallways etc.)

5. NHAAC updates

Terri brought up the PowerPoint slide deck presentation that is going to be presented at the NHAAC meeting in beginning of Nov. As part of the Agenda, each region needs to give a presentation at NHAAC.

Terri then went over each slide and its contents.

Showed the group the 5 Challenges chosen:

1. Dredging
2. Covid-19
3. Delivery of budget 2021
4. Capacity pressures, internal and external
5. Evolving Indigenous engagement

Showed the group the 3 Successes chosen:

1. AWVRP
2. New FN HAs in the Region
3. HAABC

Showed the group the 3 opportunities chosen:

1. PSSI
2. Ghost gear and net recycling program
3. Advancing reconciliation and client relationships

Dredging will be a national issue and so we will also be having a slide on the presentation talking about the challenges we have experienced so far.

6. Roundtable, wrap-up and next meeting

1. Round table

   Lutz Budde:
   dredging for some harbour is a vital maintenance requirement and an item that needs full support from SCH. Dredging is expensive and brings with it environmental complexities and unfortunately it is often pushed to the back burner.

   Their last inspection at Oona River was done in 2016 and was wanting to get an idea as to when the next inspection is scheduled for? In general, it would be good to know when harbours can see visits from program officers again. These visits are great to showcase what is going on around harbours as well as giving a better understanding of any requests harbours have for any projects, with or without the help of SCH.

   In general, it is great to hear that SCH positions are now fully staffed up. This should help most harbours.

   Action Item: Find out when Oona River has their next inspection by SCH scheduled for?

   Leslie Taylor:
   Comox Valley Harbour Authority has had a busy season. Moorage revenues are up from last year. Many American tourists visited now that Covid restrictions have loosened. Experienced difficulty in getting staff for summer and permanent positions. They have noticed an increase in unpleasant interactions with the public now that they are out and about more. There is still some uncertainty as to the requirements of providing Public Access as part of their lease obligation with SCH. Would like a clear statement from SCH which would assist in forming a policy for a new gate being installed for limiting public access.

   Action Item: Provide Leslie with a clear statement regarding requirements of providing public access at harbours.

   Jaime Gusto:
   Jaime briefed the Committee on the continued difficulties in obtaining funding to dredge the Cannery Channel. She mentioned that she met with Minister Murray’s Chief of Staff and provided him with economic data to support Steveston Harbour Authorities’ case for channel dredging.

   Additionally, she mentioned that at Steveston Gulf, A&B floats are being replaced by SCH. Part of that project includes dredging the water lot. This is one of the largest SCH projects as over 70 vessels had to be relocated and 2 restaurants. Otherwise, the project has been progressing and running smoothly.

   Ben Mabberley:
   No major updates to share.

   Mike Jacobs: No major updates to share.
   

2. Next meetings

   Next PRHAAC meeting

   Action Item: To think of a time and venue (Jaime is open to having another meeting at the Steveston Boardroom again)

Action items

1. Completed: Arian to follow up with Vahid in regards to obtaining a copy of the old Maintenance Manual and sending it to Ben Mabberley.
2. Completed: Arian to send a copy of the previous June 30th, Record of Decisions to PRHAAC members for their review and information.
3. Completed: Arian to find out how many fishermen actually came back to recover their gear in Ghost Gear and share with the group.
4. Completed: Find out when Oona River has their next inspection by SCH scheduled for?
5. Completed: To think of a time and venue (Jaime is open to having another meeting at the Steveston Boardroom again)
6. Completed: Provide Leslie with a clear statement regarding requirements of providing public access at harbours.