The founder of a traditional fishing advocacy group is concerned about a proposal that would potentially put more plastic in the ocean, by requiring participants in the recreational food fishery to use tags when they land cod.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is holding consultations around Newfoundland and Labrador in November to get public input on its plan to introduce a tag and licensing system for the recreational fishery in 2017.



"We just don't want to see more plastic in the ocean, that's our biggest concern at this point," said Kimberly Orren, the founder and volunteer project manager with Fishing for Success in Petty Harbour — a non-profit organization dedicated to sharing and celebrating traditional fishing culture.

Logan Doyle caught this cod - with no licence and no tags - during his first try at the recreational fishery in 2016. (Submitted by Wanda Doyle)

Orren said she's not sure how many tags will be issued, but with 46 days allotted for the recreational fishery in 2016, and five fish per day allowed per person, that's a lot of plastic that could end up in the water.

"So, we're talking about even getting rid of the ubiquitous plastic bag, and reduce, reuse, recycle, and we're going to introduce more plastic? It just seems to be something we're battling on every other front ... let's think of another management measure," said Orren.

Codfish are often processed at the wharf once a boat lands, and Orren said that means carcasses, with the tag attached, usually end up in the water.

Tags from Newfoundland and other areas collected from beaches in the U.K. are shown here in a photo posted on the onthestrandline website. (onthestrandline)

She said beachcombers in the UK are finding tags from Newfoundland decades after they went into the water, and they're virtually unchanged.

"They don't biodegrade, they just simply break into smaller and smaller pieces and then animals eat them and they enter into the food chain."

DFO has said the licensing and tagging system will help track how many cod are taken during the recreational fishery. The first in a series of public consultations will be held at the Capital Hotel in St. John's on Nov. 3 from 7 to 9 p.m.