Terms of Reference

Review of Mitigation and Monitoring Measures for Seismic Survey Activities in and near the Habitat of Cetacean Species at Risk

National Peer Review – National Capital Region

March 25-27, 2014
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Chairperson: Don Bowen

Context

There has been increasing interest in oil and gas development in Canadian waters by the Offshore Petroleum Industry. Exploration licenses have recently been issued for land parcels off Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, and the most recent call for bids off Nova Scotia included areas immediately adjacent to identified critical habitat of cetacean species listed as endangered under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). A call for bids for additional areas that may overlap with or abut identified critical habitat is anticipated in 2014. Concerns have been raised about the potential impacts of oil and gas activities on SARA-listed cetacean species, particularly noise produced by seismic airgun arrays during seismic surveys.

Since 2007, the Statement of Canadian Practice with respect to the Mitigation of Seismic Sound in the Marine Environment (SOCP) has been used to guide minimum standard mitigation requirements for seismic operations in Canada. The SOCP was developed to mitigate potential negative population-level impacts of seismic sound produced during seismic surveys on marine mammals. Under the SARA, however, protection from harm, harassment and mortality is provided at the individual-level, and specific areas of identified critical habitat are to be protected from destruction.

The generic requirements of the SOCP may not be adequate to avoid impacts to Species at Risk and their critical habitat. The SOCP itself states that additional or modified mitigation measures may be required for species of concern. The increased interest in oil and gas development in areas frequented by SARA-listed cetaceans, including areas in/near identified critical habitat, has led to a need to evaluate the ability of the SOCP to prevent impacts to SARA-listed species, and to determine if additional or modified mitigation and monitoring measures are needed to avoid harm and harassment of individuals or destruction of their critical habitat. The intent of this process is to develop science advice that is applicable at the national level in order to be used to provide additional measures to monitor and mitigate the impacts of seismic survey activities on cetaceans in general and Species at Risk in particular. This information is intended to supplement, but not replace, the current SOCP.

Objectives

With respect to the potential impact of seismic surveys (both small airgun arrays and wide azimuth surveys) on cetaceans, and in particular on SARA-listed species including Scotian Shelf Northern Bottlenose Whales, North Atlantic Right Whales, and Atlantic Blue Whales (all Endangered):

• Identify which sound exposure criteria (e.g., received sound level or exposure thresholds) could be used to avoid:
  1. physical harm/injury/mortality of individuals,
  2. harassment/disturbance of individuals; and
  3. destruction of critical habitat
• Identify whether the application of the current requirements outlined in the SOCP avoid (a), (b) and (c) above, and;
• If not, based on scientific literature and new studies completed since the development of the SOCP, identify modifications to the current SOCP or additional mitigation and monitoring measures that could be used to avoid or minimize the occurrence of (a), (b) and (c).

Note that studies for this peer review will be focused on the Maritimes Region as a case study.

Participation

• DFO Science
• DFO Ecosystem Management (Species at Risk Management Division, Oceans and Coastal Management Division)
• DFO Policy and Economics 
• Academic experts
• Consulting experts
• Offshore Petroleum Boards
• The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers
• Environmental NGOs
• Natural Resources Canada