WHEREAS ancient and fragile glass sponge reefs previously thought to be extinct exist off British Columbias coast and are at risk from disturbances caused by trawling, trapping and anchoring; AND WHEREAS Fisheries Oceans Canada has designated the Hecate StraitQueen Charlotte Sound glass sponge reefs as an Area of Interest within the Pacific North Coast: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that UBCM urge Fisheries Oceans Canada to also designate the glass sponge reefs in the Southern Strait of Georgia specifically McCall Bank, Howe Sound, Fraser Ridge, Active Pass, Nanaimo, Coulee Bank and Parksville as areas of interest for protection.
Environment Canada Although the protection of sponge reefs is the responsibility of Fisheries Oceans Canada, it may interest you to know that my department is working toward the designation of a marine national wildlife area to protect seabirds and their marine environment around the Scott Islands off northern Vancouver Island. This work is being done in collaboration with Fisheries Oceans Canada and other federal departments, as a marine national wildlife area designated under the Canada Wildlife Act has the ability to protect all species and habitat within that site. At this time, the proposed boundary for this protected area includes marine habitat recognized as sensitive by Environment Canada and Fisheries Oceans Canada. The sponge reefs discovered in a number of areas within the Strait of Georgia region have international significance and ties to the more extensive hexactinellid glass sponge reefs found a number of years ago in the Hecate Strait region of British Columbias central and northern Pacific coast. Fisheries Oceans Canada has already designated the northern sponge reefs as areas of interest and is considering their potential for establishment as marine protected areas. With regard to the sponge reef area in Active Pass, Parks Canada can certainly give it consideration, as it will likely fall inside the proposed boundaries of the future Southern Strait of Georgia National Marine Conservation Area Reserve. This action will need to be co-ordinated with Fisheries Oceans Canadas Pacific region offices and the Pacific Geological Survey offices of Natural Resources Canada, which are collaborating to complete the bathymetric survey work seabed mapping that led to the identification of the rare sponge reefs. Fisheries Oceans Canada Regarding your request for protection of glass sponge reefs in the southern Strait of Georgia, the process to identify an Area of Interest for an Oceans Act Marine Protected Area is extensive, and the Department is currently prioritizing designation of DFOs current Areas of Interest for the Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs and Race Rocks, respectively. However, under the auspices of the Sustainable Fisheries Framework, DFO has developed the Policy for Managing the Impacts of Fishing on Sensitive Benthic Areas to mitigate impacts of fishing on sensitive benthic areas and avoid serious or irreversible harm to sensitive marine habitat, communities and species. Mitigation measures may include gear restrictions or area closures to avoid important known coral and sponge communities. The policy outlines several steps to identify sensitive benthic areas, of which the development of an Ecological Risk Assessment Framework ERAF is a key element. Work is currently underway to complete the ERAF, and there may be an opportunity to use the Strait of Georgia glass sponge reefs as one of the first pilot applications of the ERAF to assess impacts of shellfish and groundfish fisheries; the Department has assembled a working group to explore this possibility. For more information on the policy, please visit DFOs website at: www.dfo-mpo.gc.cafm-gppeches-fisheriesfish-ren-pechesff-cpdbenthi-eng.h…