FREDERICTON (GNB) – The province will soon accept bids on fishing locations along some of New Brunswick's Atlantic salmon and brook trout waters, Natural Resources Minister Bruce Northrup said today.

“The provincial government has been holding public auctions for Crown angling leases for 130 years in order to generate local employment as well as revenue that helps pay for wildlife conservation programs and other important public programs and services,” said Northrup. “The next auction will be held March 13, 2013, and will see the auction join the computer age as interested parties will now have the option of submitting bids online as well as in person.”

The auction is for 17 angling leases on Crown-owned waters, all of which are subject to aboriginal and treaty rights. The leases include 16 along the Restigouche, Miramichi and Tabusintac watershed systems. The remaining lease is for Dicks Lake in Kings County.

Leases will take effect April 1, 2013, and are for 10 years. Depending upon the specific location, minimum lease prices range from $2,900 to $87,300 annually, excluding property taxes, and increase annually at the rate of inflation.

If all the angling leases are sold, the provincial government will earn a minimum of $7.5 million in angling leases over the next 10 years.

Among the requirements of lessees is to hire staff to provide warden protection on the stretches leased, which increases conservation of New Brunswick's salmon and trout resources.

There is no provincially owned on-shore infrastructure, such as lodges, associated with the Crown angling leases. However, there are privately-owned lodges and other infrastructure on many of the sites. In those cases, lease holders must also pay the province to lease Crown land on which a structure is located as well as related property taxes.

“The monies generated by these leases help pay for programs and services for all New Brunswickers but the biggest impact is the economic boost to the areas where the leases are located,” said Northrup. “It is estimated that these leases support about 200 jobs during the angling season and pump more than $8 million into local economies.”

New Brunswick has been leasing Crown angling waters to the public continuously since 1883. Until now, all the bidding for leases took place at a single live auction.

Now, interested parties will be able to submit bids online for up to two weeks prior to the March 13 public auction, which will begin at 10 a.m. in the K.C. Irving Theatre of the Hugh John Flemming Forestry Centre, Fredericton.

The highest online bidder for each lease will have the option of further participating in the live auction on March 13 through telephone bidding.

“Introducing an online bidding system and better marketing of the auction will greatly increase our target audience and allow participation by any interested bidder around the world,” said Northrup. “This has the potential to generate higher revenues for the province and its people.”

For more information, visit the department website.


18-12-12