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Marine Protected Area Network Strategy for the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence Bioregion

Marine Protected Area Network Strategy for the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence Bioregion

Marine Protected Area Network Strategy for the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence Bioregion (PDF, 6.76 MB)

Table of Contents

Definitions

Marine Protected Area

The definition adopted is a modified version of the definition proposed in 2008 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the World Commission on Protected Areas (IUCN/WCPA), which has been adapted to the marine environment:

“A clearly defined marine geographical space recognized, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem services and functions and cultural values.”

Therefore, a marine protected area is guided by the IUCN principles listed below:

However, network development will respect the various federal and provincial statutes that will be used to establish MPAs depending on the conservation objective of the area. With respect to Oceans Act designated marine protected areas an adaptive management approach will be applied as required.

Network of Marine Protected Areas

The definition adopted for this strategy reads as follows:

“A collection of individual marine protected areas that operates complementary and synergistically, at various spatial scales, and with a range of protection levels, in order to fulfill ecological aims more effectively and comprehensively than individual sites could do alone.”

This definition of an MPA network was proposed by IUCN in 2007 and informed the development of the National Framework for Canada’s Network of Marine Protected Areas.

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