Proceedings 2024/034

Proceedings of the Regional Peer Review on the Biophysical and Ecological Overview of the Fundian Channel-Browns Bank Area of Interest; November 27–29, 2018, December 19, 2018, and February 26, 2019

Chairperson: Tana Worcester

Editor: Jennifer Ford

Summary

Under the Oceans Act, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is authorized to protect selected coastal and ocean areas through the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), where the identification of an Area of Interest (AOI) is the first step in this process. The Fundian Channel-Browns Bank area was announced as an AOI on March 22, 2018. The Ecosystems Management Sector of DFO has requested DFO Science provide advice and supporting document(s) through this Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) regional peer review to inform the establishment of the Fundian Channel - Browns Bank AOI as an MPA.To achieve this objectives, meetings for the Regional Peer Review Process of the Biophysical and Ecological Overview of the Fundian Channel – Browns Bank Area of Interest were held November 27–29, 2018, with follow up meetings on December 19, 2018, and February 26, 2019. These meetings were intended to provide information on the key biophysical and ecological attributes of the area, especially as it pertains to potential conservation priorities and their linkages to other key ecosystem components and processes. The biophysical and ecological overview will assist in formulating and/or refining conservation objectives, delineating the proposed MPA boundary (and zones if required), and completing an ecological risk analysis to inform the development of the regulatory approach for the MPA. Participants in this meeting included DFO, other government agencies, First Nations and Indigenous groups and key stakeholders. This proceedings document includes a summary of the presentations and constitutes a record of the meeting discussions.

Proceedings 2024/034 (PDF, 839 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.