A Richmond retailer has been fined $77,500 for possessing abalone, an endangered shellfish whose numbers have been in sharp decline since the 1970s. Northern abalone, which is found off West Coast waters extending up to Alaska, is sold at premium prices, from between $50 to $100 each. It is still legal to fish abalone off Mexico and parts of the U.S. West Coast and import it for sale in Canada. The Species at Risk Act forbids the capture and sale of Canadian northern abalone, which has been declared an endangered species. Obstructed fishery officerThe Richmond retailer was also fined for obstructing a fisheries officer when he failed to disclose his entire fish inventory to inspectors, Hlavac said.

Source: CBC News September 01, 2016 02:48 UTC