There are some positive signs for the province’s snow crab industry out of the latest stock assessment by DFO.
Overall, the stock exploitable biomass has increased during the last three years from what DFO says were historic lows.
The catch per unit effort, meaning how much crab is caught per fishing effort, has increased overall since 2018 and is at or above time series averages in most divisions across the province.
As well, total mortality has decreased in all assessment areas in recent years.
The one particular area of concern is Labrador, where the number of crab removed remains high and they are seeing less of an abundance of female crab.