A recent report from SeaBlue Canada indicates that over half of Canada’s marine refuges, which is a form of marine protected area in Canada, do not comply with international standards. Despite the fact that Canada has made important progress to protect its marine and coastal environment, the report notes that stronger standards are needed to sustain biodiversity.
Since 2015, Canada has designated 7.9% of the ocean as protected areas. Nonetheless, with more than half of that protected under Fisheries Act measures, many harmful industrial practices can still take place. Fisheries Act measures restrict fishing impacts and some other harmful activities but cannot protect against many other significant threats to the marine environment.
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Using publicly available information, the report reviewed all 54 areas protected through the Fisheries Act and assessed how these areas met criteria set out by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, as well as guidance recently adopted at the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Meeting CBD criteria establishes if sites can count as ‘protected’ at an international level. Canada pledged to revisit its marine refuges after the adoption of international guidance.
Most of current fisheries closures do not allow bottom fishing activities and have been put in place to protect fragile sponge and coral communities. Some aim to protect a single species or prohibit only a single type of fishing gear.
Travis Aten, lead author of the report, explained:
When assessed according to new international guidelines, only 40 per cent of the total area closed under the Fisheries Act met this guidance. The remaining 60 per cent need a variety of improvements to meet globally accepted standards, and we provide specific recommendations for these improvements
Currently, a large proportion of Canada’s protected ocean areas, the marine refuges, are at risk from oil and gas exploration and development, according to Sigrid Kuehnemund, vice president of oceans conservation at WWF-Canada. The Fisheries Act does not prohibit these activities, and because of this, protected sensitive habitats are still vulnerable to oil and gas impacts such as disturbance of the seabed, exposure to drill muds and of potential oil spills.
The fishing industry has collaborated with government and conservation organizations to set aside areas for protection. SeaBlue Canada suggests that in order to maintain the trust of the fishing industry and Canadians, it is important to protect these areas from other industrial activities that put the fish and fish habitat, including oil and gas, at risk.
Finally, the report sets out some recommendations, which include:
- Update national guidance to align with international standards, particularly as Canada can set an example for other countries by improving marine refuges to more fully align with international standards;
- Pass the amended Fisheries Act, currently in second reading at the Senate of Canada, to ensure these areas become permanently protected through ecologically special areas provisions;
- Clearly identify monitoring and management for each marine refuge to ensure biodiversity is being effectively conserved;
- Smaller areas that only protect a single species should be removed from consideration as marine refuges when they do not contribute to the overall protection of biodiversity, despite being important fisheries management measures;
- Review the Atlantic Offshore Accord Agreements so that oil and gas exploration and development is restricted from areas closed to protect fish and fish habitat.
See further details in the following PDF