2022-23 Departmental Results Report

United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by Canada and all 193 United Nations member states in 2015, is a global framework centered around an ambitious set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), covering the interconnected economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

Fisheries

While the Department works to advance many of the 17 SDGs, much of the Department’s programming under this Core Responsibility is focused on SDG 14, which aims to "conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development."

The targets tied to SDG 14 focus on different aspects of ocean conservation and sustainable use, including reducing marine pollution, protecting and restoring marine ecosystems, regulating fishing activities, conserving coastal and marine areas, and enhancing scientific research and knowledge-sharing. By addressing the challenges facing our oceans and promoting sustainable practices, SDG 14 aims to ensure the long-term health and resilience of marine ecosystems, the sustainable use of marine resources, and the well-being of coastal communities.

In support of SDG target 14.1, the Department continued to implement the Ghost Gear Fund. In response to Hurricane Fiona in September 2022, the Ghost Gear Fund received an additional $1.5 million in emergency funding for immediate cleanup, and $28.5 million for 2023-24 to continue cleanup and recovery efforts of the hardest hit areas. In total, in 2022-23, DFO funded 47 projects, which retrieved 10,884 units of gear (409 tonnes) and over 311 kilometers of rope. Internationally, Canada continued to demonstrate leadership in tackling ghost gear as the first nation to share reported lost gear data with the Global Ghost Gear Initiative, as was highlighted at the UN Oceans Global Ghost Gear side event and the International Marine Debris Conference in South Korea in 2022. This work helped conserve and restore Canada’s marine environment to benefit marine life, food security, and coastal communities.

In support of SDG target 14.2, DFO continued to implement the Whales Initiative, which involves the Department’s many activities to understand and manage whales in Canadian waters. This initiative focuses on three endangered species and populations – Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW) in British Columbia; St. Lawrence Estuary belugas (SLEB) in Quebec; and North Atlantic right whales (NARW) on the East Coast, but may provide benefits across other co occurring whale species.

In support of SDG target 14.4, DFO launched the Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative (PSSI), its largest-ever investment to stabilize, protect, and rebuild salmon populations. The PSSI is being advanced through four implementation pillars, namely conservation and stewardship, salmon enhancement, harvest transformation, and integration and collaboration.

DFO continued its work to eliminate harmful fisheries subsidies, which contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, through ongoing negotiations at the World Trade Organization. This work supports SDG target 14.6 and the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of ensuring coherence in Canada’s international efforts, as well as international and domestic efforts to support the advancement of the SDGs. The Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, which prohibits certain subsidies that contribute to illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing, was adopted in June 2022 by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and Canada ratified the agreement in May 2023, becoming the fifth WTO member to do so.

In support of SDG targets 14.7 and 14.B, as well as the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of leaving no one behind, DFO’s fisheries funds supported innovation, sustainability, and the ability of the fish and seafood sector to meet the growing demands of a worldwide market. In 2022-23, the Atlantic Fisheries Fund invested in 137 new projects with the aim of driving innovation throughout the Atlantic fish and seafood sector, representing a federal investment of over $23.5 million. The British Columbia Salmon Restoration Innovation Fund continued to prioritize funding for projects that relate to aquaculture and the changing environment, including climate change effects like drought, forest fires, and flooding. Of the 97 projects funded under BCSRIF, almost half were aimed at addressing ecosystem shifts and climate change. In 2022-23, the Quebec Fisheries Fund approved 42 projects valued at a total of $6.2 million to adopt new technologies in the fish and seafood sector that aim to improve productivity and product quality and reduce fuel consumption..

In support of SDG target 14.C and the and the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of ensuring coherence in Canada’s international efforts, as well as international and domestic efforts to support the advancement of the SDGs, DFO worked with Global Affairs Canada to establish the Shared Ocean Fund, an initiative announced under Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, to champion sustainable and healthy oceans through improved international ocean governance, work to strengthen and enforce the rules based order in the region, and support Indo Pacific states’ blue economy potential. The Shared Ocean Fund received $84.3 million and heavily focuses on combatting IUU fishing through the use of the Dark Vessel Detection platform, which remotely identifies and tracks vessels whose location transmitting devices have been switched off.

Aquatic Ecosystems

The targets tied to SDG 14 focus on different aspects of ocean conservation and sustainable use, including reducing marine pollution, protecting and restoring marine ecosystems, regulating fishing activities, conserving coastal and marine areas, and enhancing scientific research and knowledge-sharing. By addressing the challenges facing our oceans and promoting sustainable practices, SDG 14 aims to ensure the long-term health and resilience of marine ecosystems, the sustainable use of marine resources, and the well-being of coastal communities. This Core Responsibility also advances SDG 13, which aims to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”, and SDG 15, which aims to “protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss”.

In support of SDG target 13.2, DFO continued its work to modernize the Oceans Act to explicitly consider climate change impacts on marine ecosystems and species in regional ocean management.

In support of SDG target 14.1, DFO continued to implement the Charlevoix Blueprint for Healthy Oceans, Seas and Resilient Coastal Communities. This included addressing the threat to ecosystems of ocean plastic waste and marine litter. Canada’s investments in mitigating marine pollution, both domestically and internationally, are seen as leading efforts to clean up the ocean.

In support of SDG target 14.2, DFO continued to advance Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), a collaborative approach that brings together federal, provincial, territorial, and Indigenous governments and other stakeholders to better coordinate the use and management of oceans to achieve sustainable ecological, economic, cultural, and social objectives. In 2022-23, DFO continued MSP processes in five marine areas: the Pacific North Coast, Southern British Columbia, the Bay of Fundy-Scotian Shelf, the Newfoundland and Labrador Shelves, and the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence.

In support of SDG target 14.4, DFO continued its work to effectively manage existing MPAs and Other Effective Area based Conservation Measures (OECMs). In 2022-23, DFO and the Government of Canada published the Government of Canada’s Guidance for Recognizing Marine OECMs, which will apply to existing and future federal marine OECMs, including marine refuges. The Department also co-hosted the fifth International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) in February 2023 with the highest level of participation to date, which helped reinforce Canada's leadership at home and abroad on marine planning and conservation issues and offered opportunities for collaboration to identify new areas of opportunity and discuss the transition to a sustainable ocean economy where sustainable production, effective protection, and equitable prosperity go hand in hand.

In support of SDG target 14.5, DFO continued its important work to achieve the mandate commitment to conserve 25 per cent of Canada’s oceans by 2025, which will help to protect biodiversity for generations to come. As of February 2023, 14.66 per cent of Canada's marine and coastal areas were recognized as conserved and work progressed on identifying a number of new protected areas. In December 2022, at the United Nations Biodiversity Conference, the Prime Minister announced funding of up to $800 million to support up to four Indigenous-led conservation initiatives in Great Bear Sea (Northern Shelf Bioregion, B.C.), Qikiqtani Region (Nunavut), Northwest Territories, and Omushkego (Ontario). This investment is intended to support the establishment of protected areas through an innovative funding model, Project Finance for Permanence (PFP), which is based on partnership. It brings together Indigenous organizations, governments, and the philanthropic community to identify shared goals for protecting nature and ultimately halting biodiversity loss.

In support of SDG Target 14.A; and, the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of ensuring coherence within Canada’s international efforts and between international and domestic efforts to support the advancement of the SDGs, DFO, on behalf of Canada, continued to demonstrate leadership in advancing gender equity in ocean science in the context of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030 (“Ocean Decade”) and through the Department’s role as the Commonwealth Blue Charter Champion of Ocean Observation. In 2022-23, DFO provided financial support for programming related to gender equity in ocean science, which supported several graduate students interested in a career in ocean science as well as a variety of relevant events / webinars, and the development of resources to help advance gender equity in ocean science.

In support of SDG target 15.5 and the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of advancing reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, DFO continued to collaborate with Indigenous partners and worked to better integrate Traditional Knowledge into planning and policy decisions. In 2022-23, DFO continued its work on collaborative arrangements through the Aboriginal Fund for Species at Risk and the Canadian Nature Fund for Aquatic Species at Risk, which give preference to projects that clearly demonstrate Indigenous partnerships or leadership in project planning, development, and/or implementation. In 2022-23, DFO provided over $7.5 million in support for 130 new and previously-approved projects through these programs, benefitting over 140 aquatic species at risk.

In support of SDG target 15.8, DFO continued to work on the development of guidelines and policies for the continued implementation of the Aquatic Invasive Species Regulations (2015) and advanced training for intra- and inter-departmental partners in the Incident Command System to be better prepared to respond to aquatic invasive species incursions and enforce the Regulations. Further, a national process for identifying and nominating species for addition to the Regulations was developed and tested, and the first nomination process was completed, including screening 45 species in 2022-23. This work was done in collaboration with provinces and territories through the National Aquatic Invasive Species Committee.

Marine Navigation

In support of SDG target 14.A, DFO, on behalf of Canada, continued to demonstrate leadership in advancing gender equity in ocean science. Canada participated in the International Hydrographic Organization's Empowering Women in Hydrography project, with the aim of organizing initiatives to enable more women to participate equitably in the field of hydrography and to assume more leadership roles within the hydrographic community. This has increased awareness and momentum of the issue in DFO and internationally.

Marine Operations and Response

In support of SDG target 13.2 and the 2021 Speech from the Throne’s priority of bolder climate action, as well as the Greening Government Strategy’s goal of net-zero emissions from the Government of Canada’s operations by 2050, CCG collaborated with government, industry, and international partners to prepare the first draft of an operational fleet decarbonization plan. The plan will have a ship air shore approach to decarbonization, with ambitious but achievable targets. The draft is consistent with Environment and Climate Change Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy.

Internal Services

While the Department works to support many of the 17 SDGs, and much of the Department’s programming is focused on SDG 14, which aims to "conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development", DFO Internal Services also advances SDG 10, which aims to “reduce inequality within and among countries”; SDG 12, which aims to “ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns”; and SDG 13, which aims to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”.

In support of SDG target 10.2 and the Federal Implementation Plan for the 2030 Agenda horizontal objective of advancing reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, the Department continued to implement the DFO-CCG Reconciliation Strategy, a roadmap for advancing reconciliation and a framework for rethinking how to accelerate the Department’s efforts. The strategy will also serve as an important guidepost and tool for advancing departmental reconciliation efforts in line with The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. The strategy is intended to adapt over time, responding to challenges and building on successes, and will evolve in step with the Government of Canada’s implementation of the UN Declaration. In 2022-23, the Department advanced implementation of the strategy through the following activities:

• ongoing support for efforts to increase employees’ awareness of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, expected roles, and aspirations through a virtual Métis history learning event; workshops on Two Eyed Seeing and Indigenous Knowledge approaches; a keynote speech from an Indigenous scholar focusing on deconstructing colonialism in the federal public service; participation in the national Indigenous student recruitment initiative; and the launch of several new Indigenous employee networks
• co leading with the National Indigenous Fisheries Institute on the development of guidance to facilitate meaningful inclusion of Indigenous perspectives in the continued implementation of the Reconciliation Strategy and the CCG Indigenous Relations Framework

In support of SDG target 12.4, DFO continued to work towards the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan goal to either close or implement a risk management regime at 95 per cent of all existing federally controlled contaminated sites by 2035. A contaminated site is one at which substances occur at concentrations that exceed levels specified in policies and regulations or that are above background levels and either pose or are likely to pose a hazard to human health or the environment. In 2022-23, DFO implemented assessments at 454 sites (more than the 410 sites originally planned for the year) and remediation at 181 sites, for a total investment of $28.6 million.

In support of SDG target 13.2, DFO, as part of its Carbon Neutral Portfolio Strategy, the Department evaluated some of its priority sites and outlined appropriate measures for different types of assets. This framework is the basis for a comprehensive climate resiliency approach that was recently developed for key real property assets (such as buildings), which will include prioritization of assets from most to least vulnerable. DFO effectively integrated regional and site-level climate resiliency considerations into its annual building management planning to identify sites that would benefit from climate resiliency assessments or plans, and completed an assessment of the Department’s base in Sorel, Quebec in 2022-23.

In support of SDG target 14.A, DFO continued to advance the Government of Canada’s Laboratories Canada strategy to create world class, innovative, and collaborative science research centres across the nation. In 2022-23, DFO’s work was on schedule to turn the Moncton based Atlantic Science Enterprise Centre (ASEC) into a multi-disciplinary science facilities with a focus on climate change research. While ASEC is being modernized and expanded, work also continued to upgrade the laboratory facilities at the St. Andrews Biological Station to include a climate change aqualab, a laboratory designed for live animal research. This aqualab will support the ASEC science plan and act as a satellite site for ASEC, providing aquatic research capacity sooner and reducing the overall cost of construction at the Moncton ASEC site. Scientific data about aquatic environments, fish, marine mammals, climate change, and hydrography is an essential component of DFO’s work and decision making. Modernized, multi purpose facilities will enable Canada's federal researchers and scientists to collaborate and deliver cutting edge, world class science.