Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier Allocates $120 Million for Atlantic Ghost Gear and Ropeless Trap Tech

MONCTON, N.B. — Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Diane Lebouthillier announced on Monday the distribution of $120 million in enhanced federal funding through the Ghost Gear Fund to remove abandoned, lost, or discarded commercial fishing gear from Atlantic waters and accelerate the commercial deployment of on-demand, acoustic-release "ropeless" fishing gear.

The initiative targets high-intensity fishing zones across the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Bay of Fundy, and Scotian Shelf, supporting Canada's multi-billion-dollar commercial lobster and snow crab fisheries while safeguarding critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from dangerous vertical rope entanglements.

Protecting Marine Ecosystems and International Seafood Market Access Abandoned ghost gear continues to trap and kill marine life for decades while introducing microplastics into marine food webs. Furthermore, international seafood import standards under the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) require strict whale entanglement mitigation to maintain export access to American markets.

"Canada's commercial harvesters are the stewards of our oceans, and our seafood is recognized worldwide for its premium quality and environmental sustainability," Minister Diane Lebouthillier said in Shediac. "This $120 million investment equips our commercial fishing fleets with cutting-edge acoustic-release gear, allowing harvesters to fish safely in whale conservation zones without vertical lines, while removing hundreds of metric tons of lost ghost gear from our waters."

Program Elements and Gear Subsidies The $120 million package funds:

• Commercial Ropeless Gear Transition Rebates: $65 million providing 75 percent purchase subsidies for commercial harvesters acquiring acoustic transponder-activated subsurface lobster and crab traps.
• Ghost Gear Retrieval Operations: $35 million for dedicated marine retrieval vessels operated in partnership with commercial fish harvester associations and Indigenous coastal communities.
• Circular Gear Recycling Hubs: $20 million to establish nylon and polypropylene net and rope recycling depots across coastal harbours in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, and Newfoundland.

Commercial harvester unions, seafood processing associations, and marine conservation biologists commended the federal investment, highlighting that ropeless technology prevents seasonal fishery closures while preserving international export certifications.