Regional Oceans Plan - Scotian Shelf, Atlantic Coast, Bay of Fundy
Background and Program Description
Table of Contents
Oceans and Coastal Management
The aim of the Oceans and Coastal Management component of the Plan is to support and improve planning, management and decision making in the marine environment. This is done through the prioritization of oceans and coastal management issues, provision of knowledge, assessment and advisory products, and collaboration with others to solve management problems. DFO undertakes an ongoing issue assessment and prioritization approach to direct research, assessments and management actions by the department and others with a mandate for oceans and coastal management. This work includes the consideration of issues identified through ongoing work in the field, knowledge of existing and planned marine development activities (e.g., offshore oil and gas, renewable energy etc.), engagement with the scientific community, government partners and stakeholders, and from international and national reports and studies on oceans-related topics. For example, information on bioregional status and trends from the State of the Scotian Shelf and State of the Gulf of Maine reports are used to inform planning and management. This prioritization approach also provides direction for and is supported by geospatial analysis and products, such as maps of human activities and ecological features.
Underpinning this work is the application of risk management approaches to assess, evaluate and respond to pressures and impacts. This is essential to ensure that departmental actions are targeted against well-defined and agreed upon priorities. Because the determination of risk involves a good understanding of often multiple pathways of effects among activities, pressures and receiving environments, ongoing collaboration within DFO and with other experts is required.
The Plan places a strong emphasis on well-informed and effective decision making for oceans and coastal management. Critical to supporting effective decision making is ensuring that sound information is available to those who need it in a timely manner and in accessible formats that can be readily used. To this end, DFO is working to develop a suite of planning, assessment and decision support tools, including marine spatial data, maps and information products, operational guidance and knowledge products, and relevant information on the status and trends of priority issues, needs and gaps in the bioregion.
Risk Management Approaches to Oceans and Coastal Management
Canada, along with over 30 nations, has adopted ISO 31000:2009 as its standard for the conduct of risk management. DFO has been working to incorporate risk management approaches using this standard within its program areas. The basic premise of risk management is to evaluate the potential impacts of certain activities against the likelihood of occurrence in order to direct efforts where they are most needed. ISO 31000:2009 outlines a process of managing risk based on a series of steps. These steps include establishing the context of the analysis, such as social, economic and cultural factors; identifying risks, including the sources and potential consequences; analyzing risks to better understand them in terms of drivers and potential mitigation; evaluating risks to review risk levels and determine required responses; treatment of risk to select options to reduce the risks; as well as steps to communicate, consult, monitor and review.
Marine Spatial Information and Analysis
DFO recognizes the importance of a spatial and temporal approach to oceans and coastal planning and management. Pragmatic and operational approaches to spatial planning and management can provide effective, flexible and adaptive solutions for management problems. This approach is also the most effective way to advance DFO’s priority for the development of practical methodologies for cumulative impact assessments, such as through the analysis of zones of influence and pathways of effects.
A longer-term objective under the Plan is to develop accessible and web-based mapping products and decision support tools to facilitate risk assessment, cumulative impact assessment, and constraint and compatibility mapping.
Marine geospatial data and information are core elements in the development of knowledge products for effective planning, management and decision support. Spatial knowledge products include maps, GIS files, analytical methodologies, inventories, digital atlases, and fact sheets.
Mapping the spatial distribution and intensity of human activities and ecological data at relevant planning scales has many applications, including:
- Identifying, assessing and mitigating human use conflicts and constraints
- Providing assessments and decision support for marine development activities
- Informing federal and provincial environmental assessment processes
- Conducting use intensity and cumulative impact assessments
- Supporting government partners, industry and project proponents by providing information related to fisheries and others uses, ecosystem sensitivities and potential impacts
- Providing information and advice for regional fisheries assessments, Integrated Fisheries Management Plans, and Marine Stewardship Council eco-certification processes
- Informing risk assessments for Species at RIsk Act (SARA) listed species, MPAs and other marine conservation areas
- Developing scenarios and options for meeting MPA and other conservation objectives at bioregional and site-specific scales
- Monitoring compliance and threats in MPAs and conservation areas
- Supporting the implementation of departmental management priorities, such as the Sustainable Fisheries Framework and SARA critical habitat identification
- Informing environmental preparedness, response and recovery operations
Data acquisition is an ongoing process to support the mapping of coastal and offshore human use and marine ecosystem attributes across the bioregion. The Plan promotes the use of validated spatial data, maps and analytical methods for addressing human use and ecosystem interactions. Human use and ecological data layers can be analyzed with appropriate techniques and combined in multiple applications for decision support, constraint and compatibility mapping, cumulative impact assessments, and conservation planning. As part of this, DFO will continue to work with other regulators, users and interests to collect and validate spatial data and products. Key spatial datasets maintained by DFO include the following:
- Commercial, Aboriginal and recreational fisheries
- Marine infrastructure (e.g., submarine cables, pipelines and oil and gas production facilities)
- Oil and gas exploration licences and prospective areas
- Shipping routes and vessel usage
- Renewable energy potential (e.g., wind, wave and tidal)
- Aquaculture leases and prospective areas
- Coastal land uses
- Areas of conservation value, such as Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs), coral and sponge areas, SARA critical habitat, and other significant area designations
- Marine science and research surveys
- Marine fish and wildlife distributions and habitats
- Existing marine management and jurisdictional areas
- Provincial parks and beaches
- Watershed boundaries
- Coastal shorelines and wetlands
- Invasive species distributions and risk areas
- Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program classification areas
- Point and non-point pollution sources, incidents and risk areas (e.g., oil spills, sewage effluent discharges, and dredge disposal sites)
Assessing Tidal Energy Development Constraints in the Bay of Fundy
Figure 7 illustrates some of the overlapping ocean uses and conservation priorities in the context of 16 potential tidal energy sites identified in the Bay of Fundy. Marine spatial planning can help resolve tidal energy development options through identification, awareness raising and potential avoidance of spatial and temporal ocean use conflicts throughout the Bay. Map overlays include several marine protection priorities such as North Atlantic right whale critical habitat, the Musquash Estuary Marine Protected Area, and several well-known Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas. Coastal aquaculture sites occur on both sides of the bay, supporting an active local marine economy in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The bay is a very productive area for multiple fisheries that would blanket the map if all fishing activities were displayed; included here are only sea scallop and groundfish landings as symbolized in the legend. Commercial shipping routes into Saint John Harbour are illustrated by two dominate vessel traffic patterns at the entrance to the bay. In terms of seabed infrastructure, an active submarine telecommunications cable crosses the area at mid-bay.
Figure 7: Overlapping Activities and Priorities in the Bay of Fundy
Figure 7 is a composite of 4 maps of the Bay of Fundy to illustrate the overlapping uses and conservation priorities in the Bay. The maps illustrate ecological and protected areas, scallop landings, groundfish landings, and other uses including shipping routes, aquaculture sites, marine cables and potential tidal power sites.
Operational Guidance and Knowledge Products
Spatial analysis and other information sources can also be used in the development of operational guidance and knowledge products. These are practical tools and guides for users of the marine environment to ensure that activities are undertaken in a manner to sustain the key ecosystem attributes present and minimize conflicts with other users. Examples of some operational guidance and knowledge products include the following:
- National-level pathways of effects models for activities, such as seismic exploration, exploratory drilling, shipping and aquaculture
- Guidance fact sheets, industry statements of practice, development standards and best management practices
- Marine environmental quality guidelines and criteria
- Mapping products for MPA and conservation planning, and for Marine Stewardship Council conditions of sustainability for certified fisheries
- Coastal and marine inventories for environmental emergency preparedness and response operations, and environmental assessments and reviews of marine developments and activities
- Risk assessment and management guidance for regional EBSAs, including site profiles with mitigation measures for various human activities
Under the Plan, opportunities will continue to be pursued to develop operational guidance products targeted at the key priorities.
Guidance for Improved Coastal Management: Land Development Standards for the Bras d’Or Lakes Watershed
The Bras d’Or Lakes in Nova Scotia is a unique estuary at the heart of Cape Breton Island. The estuary, coastal waters, and numerous freshwater rivers and streams have sustained generations of people, beginning with the Mik’maq, whose growing communities continue to rely on its natural resources. In recent years however, the health of the Bras d’Or has diminished from anthropogenic pressures such as overfishing, the introduction of invasive species, forestry, sewage inputs, and poor land development practices. To help address impacts from ongoing and future land development, the Bras d’Or Collaborative Environmental Planning Initiative (CEPI) undertook work to provide guidance in this area. Assessing a gap in the current management regime, the CEPI worked to examine and develop land use standards that could be adopted by the municipal level of government. These standards would help reduce the impacts from existing development which could proceed in a manner largely unregulated. A series of best management practices (BMPs) were examined and proposed based on their suitability for the Bras d’Or Lakes related to minimizing impacts to surface and marine waters, wetlands, shorelines and groundwater, and to minimize impacts from sea-level rise. These BMPs were developed in the language and form of municipal government policy for easy incorporation into their Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use Bylaws. They were also supported by GIS analysis, mapping and educational material. Work is ongoing to support adoption of these guidelines by the four municipalities that form part of the Bras d’Or Lakes watershed.
To compliment this work, the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources, in partnership with CEPI, undertook similar efforts within the five First Nation communities that are located on the shores of the Bras d’Or. Building on the Best Management Practices (BMPs) chosen, the UNIR developed a community based educational program for coastal protection and management with emphasis on sustaining the important species and habitats familiar to and used by the First Nation communities.
The efforts and operational guidance products developed in the Bras d’Or can serve as a resource to the many other coastal areas in the Maritimes Region where additional land development controls are needed.
Bioregional Assessment and Reporting
Informed planning and decision making requires up-to-date information on the ocean ecosystem and the activities that occur within it. DFO draws upon a variety of information sources and expertise from within the department, as well as other organizations with knowledge and information about oceans-related trends and status in the bioregion.
The information contained in the State of the Ocean Reports supports a number of applications, including environmental assessment and management, research and education. For the purpose of the Plan, this series of theme papers can help inform priority setting for various actions to address outstanding issues, trends, or gaps in knowledge.
One area of assessment where DFO is working is with Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs). EBSAs are areas that have been identified through a formal assessment as having special biological or ecological significance when compared with the surrounding marine ecosystem. DFO has identified a number of EBSAs in the coastal and offshore portions of the bioregion. These areas are to be managed with a corresponding and greater degree of risk aversion. To date, EBSAs have been used primarily to inform environmental assessments of proposed marine developments and activities and will be considered in bioregional MPA network planning and the application of the department’s Sensitive Benthic Areas Policy for sustainable fisheries management. DFO is also undertaking a systematic review of regional EBSAs to identify priorities for site profile development. Profiles will include an assessment of relevant risks, recommended mitigation and protection measures, and practical information and operational guidance for the management and use of the site. The intent is to prioritize profile development for EBSAs that are most likely to be affected by existing or future activities, as well as those areas deemed to be particularly vulnerable or at risk. This process will also provide important inputs to regional MPA planning by identifying management and protection gaps.
In addition to the assessment of EBSAs and the State of the Ocean Reports, DFO will continue to support and use scientific research on ecosystem and biological features and processes. This includes information generated through the department’s Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) process, and through long- standing research surveys, such as the Atlantic Zonal Monitoring Program (AZMP) and fisheries research trawl surveys. Similarly, DFO’s ongoing tracking, analysis and mapping of ocean uses and management issues will contribute to the setting of departmental priorities. Research and assessments prepared by other government departments, Aboriginal organizations, conservation and community groups, marine industry, and academic institutions provide other important inputs to the state of knowledge of the bioregion and its oceans and coastal management priorities.
State of the Ocean Reporting: Assessing Bioregional Issues, Trends and Priorities
DFO has supported the development of State of the Ocean Reports to provide a detailed look at the ecosystem, human activities, and emerging issues for defined ocean areas. DFO has worked in collaboration with other government and non-government partners to complete two reports covering the bioregion: State of the Scotian Shelf and State of the Gulf of Maine. These reports provide information on important ocean issues and trends to a broad range of audiences in a format that is accessible and easy to understand. The reports are modular, web-based documents made up of an introductory context document and a series of theme papers. The context documents provide overview and background information, while the theme papers provide a more in-depth look at important issues within each area. Consistent formats for the theme papers provide an overview of the issue and a description of driving forces and pressures, status and trends, impacts, actions and responses, and references.
State of the ocean context documents and theme papers include:
Scotian Shelf
- Biodiversity
- Marine Habitats and Communities
- Incidental Mortality
- Species at Risk
- Invasive Species
- Productivity
- Primary and Secondary Productivity
- Trophic Structure
- Fish Stock Status and Commercial Fisheries
- Marine Environmental Quality
- Water and Sediment Quality
- Ocean Noise
- Waste and Debris
- Ocean Acidification
- Other
- Climate Change and its Effects on Ecosystems, Habitats and Biota
- Emerging Issues
Gulf of Maine
- Climate Change
- Climate Change and Humans
- Climate Change and its Effect on Ecosystems, Habitats and Biota
- Fisheries and Aquaculture
- Commercial Fisheries
- Coastal Development
- Coastal Land Use and Development
- Contaminants
- Toxic Contaminants
- Microbial Pathogens and Toxins
- Eutrophication
- Eutrophication
- Aquatic Habitats
- Coastal Ecosystems and Habitats
- Offshore Ecosystems and Habitats
- Watershed Status
- Other
- Invasive Species
- Species at Risk
- Emerging Issues
Reports
The complete list of reports can be accessed at:
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