Sport fishing on the chopping block as Ottawa rewrites salmon rules

Fishing advocates in B.C. warn the Department of Fisheries and Oceans' proposed salmon allocation policy changes could hand control to commercial operations and First Nations while cutting out a $1.27 billion recreational industry in the province.

Drea Humphrey
  |   February 04, 2026   |   News Analysis   |   4 Comments

Canada’s sport and recreational fishing industry is facing what many fear could be the end, as the federal government considers sweeping changes to how salmon are allocated across the country.

Proposed reforms to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ (DFO) Salmon Allocation Policy (SAP) could alter who gets to control access, effectively shutting sport and recreational fishers out of having a meaningful say while increasing the control of commercial operators and First Nations.

In British Columbia alone, the sport fishing industry is valued at roughly $1.27 billion and supports thousands of jobs tied directly to tourism, guiding, hospitality and coastal communities.

Those concerns recently boiled over at a town hall in Duncan, B.C., where more than 1,000 people including fishing advocates and several MPs, gathered to voice alarm over what the proposed policy could mean for their livelihoods.

In this interview, we interviewed B.C. Fishing Association (BCFA) president Mark Roberts, who says the impact could be devastating for the province.

“Our tourism industry is going to be taken out by 1.3 billion dollars,” Roberts warns.

Roberts also discussed some of the backlash recreational fishing advocates are receiving from groups such as the First Nations Leadership Council and Island Marine Aquatic Group who have dismissed concerns re the proposed allegation as rooted in “misinformation, racism and hate.”

The same groups have further urged government to focus instead on aligning with their commitments to the United Nations aspirational framework on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

“We just want a proper fair shake at the sport industry, and we just want businesses to do well,” said Roberts, rejecting the sensational allegations of racism.

As Ottawa considers moving forward with potential changes, the B.C. Fishing Association and other advocates say they are not backing down, and are continuing to organize and share new ways for Canadians to stand with them in the fight to protect sport fishing rights.

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What’s happening in B.C. isn’t reconciliation — it’s laying the legal groundwork to take away what people have built, bought and paid taxes on. Ever since the province locked itself to UNDRIP through DRIPA, we’ve watched a slow, deliberate shift toward a two-tier system that puts vague “collective” political goals ahead of individual rights and private property. That’s not healing — that’s Marxism dressed up as justice. And if no one pushes back, it will mean ordinary British Columbians can be told where they can live, what they can do with their land, and ultimately who really controls it. Drea is one of the few reporters actually showing this to Canadians — knocking on doors, talking to families, pressing officials, and documenting what the legacy media won’t. If you don’t want B.C. turned into a test lab for ideologically driven land grabs, chip in now to keep her reporting.

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Drea Humphrey

B.C. Bureau Chief

Based in British Columbia, Drea Humphrey reports on Western Canada for Rebel News. Drea’s reporting is not afraid to challenge political correctness, or ask the tough questions that mainstream media tends to avoid.

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  • Fran G
    commented 2026-02-05 14:30:43 -0500
    Once again the villain is the federal govt. What a surprise, not. Another nail in the carnage coffin. British Colombians vote Conservative Federally and provincially. And yes, all the racial tension has been purposely orchestrated by the division our govt has enforced.
  • Roman Kierzek
    commented 2026-02-05 13:17:55 -0500
    This is what happens when you have weak leadership and accept the Woke DEI ideology. A complete purge of these individuals from their positions is the only solution
  • Mark Mullins
    commented 2026-02-05 09:56:14 -0500
    Why shouldn’t the feds use their heavy hand with salmon fishing? After all, they were so marvelously successful with the cod fishery in eastern Canada!
  • Bruce Atchison
    commented 2026-02-04 19:26:27 -0500
    How does it feel, BC, to be bullied by Ottawa? How does it feel for your industry to be nullified by eastern bureaucrats? Albertans have put up with this interference for far too long. You BC folks need to come to our side and oppose Ottawa’s ham-fisted totalitarianism.