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Fisheries and Oceans Canada
New Oceans Centres of Expertise (Coastal, Corals, Data Integration, Traditional
Ecological Knowledge)
While Canada’s three oceans each possess unique characteristics and ecosystems,
there are also certain elements that overlap within the waters. Canada has identified
five large ocean areas in which to spearhead integrated planning and management
of human activities and conservation measures. The funding will establish four new
centres of expertise to better understand selected challenges faced when managing
these five areas. These centres will develop national approaches to better protect
Canada’s deep sea coral and sponges, more effectively incorporate traditional knowledge,
develop reports on the health of our oceans, and accelerate the progress in addressing
coastal management issues.
Spill Capacity and Emergency Response Strategy- Canadian Coast Guard
As marine shipping in the Arctic continues to grow, it is important our environmental
response abilities also expand. This funding will assess Canada’s spill response
capacity in this emerging new Arctic and will provide the necessary equipment and
response systems to ensure the Canadian Coast Guard is properly prepared. The Canadian
Coast Guard will identify high risk areas of the Arctic and purchase an appropriate
system to enhance their response to oil spills.
Federal Marine Protected Area Strategy Implementation
This initiative is co-funded between Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada
and Environment Canada.
Marine Protected Areas have a critical role to play in the conservation and protection
of Canada's rich and varied marine environments. The new funding will advance the
valuable work being done by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada and Environment
Canada to implement a cooperative and collaborative approach for planning, establishing,
managing and enforcing a federal network of marine protected areas. The strategy
outlines how the departments and agency should work together to develop a comprehensive
network of marine protected areas that will conserve and protect Canada’s natural
and cultural marine resources. Marine Protected Areas have a critical role to play
in the conservation and protection of marine life and their habitats. A vital component
of achieving this goal will be to ensure that Canadians are aware of and understand
the importance of our marine environments.
Development of Federal-Provincial-Territorial Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Network
While the Government of Canada is making important progress in expanding its
network of marine protected areas, there is a need to incorporate the conservation
and protection measures that have been or will be put in place by provinces and territories. This will
allow Canada to broaden its marine protected network and preserve unique marine
areas and species that are ecologically significant and vulnerable. Funding will
allow for the important next steps to occur as Canada works with its provincial,
territorial, Aboriginal, and environmental non-governmental organizations to build
a network of marine protected areas
Marine Protected Areas Establishment
Through this initiative, the number of federal Marine Protected Areas (MPA) will
significantly increase in the next five years. This will advance the creation of
a federal MPA network and allow Canada to protect ecologically- and biologically-significant
areas of its oceans. MPAs are designed to conserve unique areas while promoting
responsible oceans development. This funding will advance the designation by DFO
of six new marine protected areas within Canada’s large oceans management areas
and will be used to create a national monitoring and reporting system for all MPAs.
The funding will also be used for enforcement and surveillance activities within
the marine protected areas.
Ecosystem Science Support and Advice on Health of the Oceans
In order to advance the designation of DFO’s six new marine protected areas over
the next five years, there needs to be funding for the scientific research. This
funding will be used to monitor the current MPAs and determine how well they are
meeting their conservation objectives. Guidelines and strategies will be developed
in order to evaluate the MPAs and outline possible monitoring programs. Scientific
research will be done to determine which areas should be a priority and what indicators
should be included when reviewing possible areas.
Collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund
This funding will advance health of the oceans projects within Newfoundland and
Labrador. These were outlined in the 2006 DFO/WWF Collaborative agreement and include
developing a cold water coral conservation strategy for the region. This strategy
will be done in full consultation with all other ocean users. DFO will also use
this money to develop joint work plans with WWF for ecosystem management in the
Placentia Bay/Grand Banks Large Oceans Management Area. It is important for the
federal government to work with its environmental non-governmental partners and
to bring a variety of voices to the table.
Arctic Council- Ecosystem Projects
Canada is a member of the Arctic Council and is collaborating with other northern
countries to protect the Arctic marine environment from both land-based and sea-based
activities. Canada, along with the United States and Norway, has the lead on developing
and testing a circumpolar ecosystem-based management approach for the Arctic. The
funding will contribute to the identification of a common monitoring strategy in
shared and boundary waters. It will also study the socio-economic aspects and governance
structures in place in the Arctic.
Gulf of Maine
This funding will allow for the completion of an ecosystem overview and assessment
of the trans-boundary waters of the Bay of Fundy/Gulf of Maine. The money will also
be used to develop and put in place an agreement between Canada and the United States
on shared
programs for the management of these waters. A second project, in partnership
with Environment Canada, will also be furthered with this new money and will focus
on developing a reporting program for coastal and marine management. This will be
part of a larger Canada/US ecosystem partnership and will support integrated fisheries
and oceans management.
Integrated Oceans Management and Canadian Environmental Assessment Act
(CEAA) Assessment Tools Linkage
This funding will allow for marine environmental assessments to be carried out
in a way that examines both project-specific impacts and the possible cumulative
effects on marine ecosystems. It will provide more contextual information on the
condition and state of the marine resources being assessed. By successfully integrating
the assessment tools developed for oceans management with those designed for CEAA,
the assessment will be more complete. This new money will also be used to provide
support for regional strategic environmental assessment pilot projects. These projects
will explore the potential cumulative effects of multiple projects and activities
on marine pathways in a given area.
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
Domestic Studies Supporting the Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment and for the
Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment from Land-based Sources of Pollution
This funding will help address pollution prevention in the Arctic through two
related initiatives: The Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment will provide information
on Canada’s traditional Arctic marine resource use, and social, economic and environmental
data to assess current and future impacts of changes to marine traffic. The Regional
Program of Action for the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment from Land-based
Activities (RPA), co-led by Canada and Iceland, will be updated and expanded to
reflect international and national developments and be more responsive to emerging
issues and opportunities with respect to land-based pollution.
Environment Canada
Working Toward Protective Measures for Seabirds in the Marine Waters Around the
Scott Islands
Work will be done to protect foraging areas in the marine waters around the Scott
Islands on the Pacific Coast.
The Scott Islands are five uninhabited islands that have some of the most important
seabird breeding locations in the world. Over two million seabirds nest there annually
and the Islands are inhabited by 12 species of seabirds in globally or nationally
significant numbers and the British Columbia government has therefore protected
the Islands. Since the Scott Islands’ vulnerable ecology has long been of interest
to both the Government of Canada and to the Province of British Columbia, both governments
have formally committed to close co-operation with regards to the implementation
of oceans management in the area. Environment Canada will continue to work collaboratively
with B.C., First Nations and other stakeholder groups to ensure that appropriate
protective measures are in place for this special area.
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