By Andy Walker
FOR THE SOU’WESTER
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Gail Shea has instructed lawyers within her department to look into the possibility of launching a lawsuit against British Petroleum.
The P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association had been considering filing a damage claim against the oil company following the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The industry group is worried the spill could impact the Island tuna fishery, since the giant bluefin spawn in that area.
However, the association later decided legal action against the multinational would be too rich for their blood and they wrote a letter to Shea asking her to take up the matter on their behalf. The minister, who is P.E.I.’s representative at the federal cabinet table, said in an interview she plans to follow through.
“I have instructed our legal people to look into the matter and I am waiting for their report before we can determine our next move,” she said. “This really brings home just how fragile and how global the tuna fishery really is.”
The deepwater oil drilling facility located off the Louisiana coast exploded in April and spewed oil into the Gulf of Mexico for close to three months until it was finally capped. British Petroleum is requiring those seeking compensation to register immediately.
“The Atlantic bluefin tuna, which is spawned in the Gulf of Mexico, attains its highest culinary and recreational value when it reaches the Gulf of Sat Lawrence, “ Association president Mike McGeoghegan said in the letter to the federal minister. “In P.E.I. alone, there are 360 fishers licensed to fish for bluefin tuna. The bluefin is the second most important fishery for many fishers on P.E.I.”
McGeoghegan said the Atlantic bluefin is put at risk from the BP spill in a number of ways. He pointed out the ram ventilation system makes the gills and respiratory system of the fish vulnerable to contamination as it passes through plumes of oil in the water.
“The feeding behavior of the fish makes it very vulnerable to directly ingesting the oil and especially to ingesting the dispersants used to cope with the oil slicks,” the association president wrote. “The bluefin is also vulnerable to contamination of its food chain including herring, mackerel and other species.”
However, he said the greatest threat lies in the future of the species, since the area of the oil slick is in the middle of its spawning grounds.
