Proceedings 2015/007

Proceedings of the Pacific Regional Peer Review on the Characterization of Fishery Effects on Valued Species, Habitat and Ecosystem Components of the Proposed Scott Islands Marine National Wildlife Area; August 6-7, 2014

Chairperson: John Holmes
Editor: Mary Thiess

Summary

Canada's Oceans Act and Oceans Strategy commit Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) to leading the development and implementation of a sustainable, precautionary and integrated ecosystem approach to oceans management. As part of this commitment, the Oceans Program is coordinating efforts within DFO and across other Federal and Provincial agencies to develop bioregional networks of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Pacific region, and to contribute to integrated ecosystem-based management approaches both regionally and nationally.

The first proposed marine National Wildlife Area (NWA), which will contribute to the Pacific MPA Network, is the Scott Islands marine National Wildlife Area (SImNWA).  This area supports the highest concentration of breeding seabirds in Canada’s Pacific Ocean.  Although Environment Canada (EC) is the lead agency for the establishment of NWAs under the Canada Wildlife Act, DFO retains the regulatory authority for management of fisheries within NWAs.  Therefore, in consultation with EC, DFO’s Ecosystem Management (Oceans Program) and Fisheries Management branches have requested that Science Branch provide advice regarding the extent and nature of the risks from commercial fishing activities on marine bird species, their habitats, and the ecosystem functioning and community properties within the proposed SImNWA.  The intended results of the analysis presented here are to: identify and inform issues that need to be addressed within an Integrated Management framework; and to prioritize gaps in knowledge and suggest potential research directions that can address these knowledge needs.

These Proceedings summarize the relevant discussions and key conclusions that resulted from a DFO, Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) Regional Peer Review (RPR) meeting on August 6-7, 2014, at the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo, B.C. A working paper (WP) focusing on the characterization of fishery effects within the proposed SImNWA was presented for peer review.

In-person and web-based participation included DFO Science, Ecosystem Management and Fisheries Management staff from regional and national offices, as well as staff from EC, the Province of British Columbia, and external participants from the commercial fishing industry, and environmental non-governmental organizations.

The conclusions and advice resulting from this review are summarized in a Science Advisory Report along with the findings of the Research Document, which will be made publicly available on the CSAS Science Advisory Schedule.

Complete document (PDF, 226 KB)

Accessibility Notice

This document is available in PDF format. If the document is not accessible to you, please contact the Secretariat to obtain another appropriate format, such as regular print, large print, Braille or audio version.