Experts warn Atlantic crab fishery on the ropes

The Atlantic snow crab industry is headed for collapse, according to fisheries consultants.

The Fisheries Resource Conservation Council has issued a report that cites a decline already underway in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence, along the Quebec north shore, near Cape Breton in Nova Scotia, and in the waters off Newfoundland and Labrador.

Gabe Gregory, vice-chair of the council, says those regions will suffer the most if crab stocks continue to decline.

"Snow crab licence enterprises rely on the species for the majority of their income and in some areas enterprises depend on snow crab for between 90 and 100 per cent of their income," Gregory said at a Monday briefing.

"The expected resource declines in Newfoundland and in eastern Nova Scotia will jeopardize the sustainability for many participants in the snow crab fishery."

Analysts say the crab population rises and falls in cycles but the pressure from fishing is steady, making for poor fishing practices. They also warn that conservation has taken a back seat to allocation disputes.

Federal Fisheries Minister Geoff Regan says he is working on reforms and hopes to have some recommendations by the fall.