INVERNESS, N.S. - People in this small Cape Breton community were planning a rally Sunday to show support for Nova Scotia fishermen locked in a dispute over the annual crab quota.
Fishermen have been blocking the mouth of the harbour in Inverness, N.S., with their boats since Thursday night to prevent New Brunswick fishing vessels from leaving the harbour.
The lobster fishermen are calling on the federal government to give them a piece of the lucrative crab quota. They're hoping that could offset a season of poor lobster catches, rising fuel costs and slumping prices.
"We're trying to get a peaceful resolution to this sooner rather than later for the New Brunswick boats,'' said fisherman Trevor MacInnis.
"But we're not going to allow them to fish until we can get a chance to talk to someone in a position of power.''
MacInnis said he's expecting fishermen from neighbouring communities and their families to turn out for the rally.
The fishermen are scheduled to meet with officials from the federal Fisheries Department on Monday to discuss the quota.
However, a spokesman for the federal Fisheries Department said that quotas are set for this year and won't change.
Luc Legere told reporters said it's unlikely the allocation could be altered since the fisheries plan had already been put in place.
He said police were monitoring the situation, but that there hadn't been any confrontations.
RCMP Sgt. Mark Gallagher said the New Brunswick fishermen have all returned home because they were unable to leave the wharf.
Liberal MP Rodger Cuzner met with the fishermen on Saturday and said he agrees they're in need of the extra income from crab fishing.
"This is the only group of fishermen on (Cape Breton Island) that don't have some kind of access to the quota, so it has to be looked at and hopefully we'll be able to bring that to the attention of the minister in the next number of days,'' he told Â鶹´«Ã½.
