The owner of a local fishing charter company is painting a bleak picture a month after recent Chinook fishing restrictions were put in place.
"Basically we're probably down 80% or 90% in business over the last 6-weeks," says Darren Beasley of Beasley's Fishing Charters.
"I think what it is, is people want to keep a fish when they go fishing. And that's the biggest problem out there. Most people, 95% of our clientele, they want to take a fish home with them at the end of the day," says Beasley.
Last month, Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced mandatory catch-and-release restrictions for commercial and recreational anglers intended to protect dwindling Chinook stocks.
Beasley questions whether his charter business or many of his colleagues' businesses will survive to next year.
"It's scary. It's been a lot of sleepless nights. There's been a lot of stress involved. I'm starting to rethink what I'm going to do.”
The catch and release restrictions will remain in place until July 31.