Decision to Safeguard Tetrahedron Provincial Park Celebrated by Conservationists
7 February, 2019
Vancouver, BC— The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society’s BC Chapter (CPAWS-BC) welcomes today’s news that Minister George Heyman has turned down the request to change the existing protection status and boundaries of Tetrahedron Provincial Park on the Sunshine Coast.
The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) had requested a change to either the park boundary or its level of protection as part of a proposed water supply infrastructure expansion that would have seen further drawdown of Chapman Lake, a main feature within the protected area.
“We are thrilled that the minister has respected the feedback of British Columbians, who were largely opposed to the reclassification of this important protected area,” said Tori Ball, Terrestrial Campaigner for CPAWS-BC. “It’s reassuring that our government is prioritizing conservation, at this critical time for protecting biodiversity across the province. ”
Stripping away the current Class A Park status from Tetrahedron or adjusting the park boundary would have had lasting effects, weakening the ecological and cultural values of the area. Well-managed protection for natural areas like Tetrahedron are critical to the long-term health of BC’s communities.
CPAWS-BC shared its opposition to this proposal in the BC Parks public consultation process, which included two open houses held on the Sunshine Coast in 2018. Both of these public, in-person consultations were packed with community members, many vocally opposed to stripping protection from Tetrahedron.
“Today’s announcement has left us feeling more optimistic for the future of BC’s parks and protected areas, which are among the most poorly resourced on the continent,” continued Ball. “We’re hopeful that this announcement is signalling a brighter future for our parks.”
How sound are the protections for Howe Sound’s glass sponge reefs?
By Sonia Singh Jind, 25 January 2019
A diver floats above a glass sponge reef in Howe Sound. Photo credit: Neil McDaniel
When scientists stumbled upon an assembly of strange, blanched formations growing overtop of one another and stretching out for hundreds of kilometers across the seafloor, they had no idea they were looking at living glass sponge reefs.
Until then, these reefs were thought to have been extinct since the Jurassic, which ended over 200 million years ago. Scientists are not quite sure why glass sponge reefs seem to have only survived off the west coast of BC, but the answers may give us insight into why these ghostly reef-builders are so rare.
Individual glass sponges – simple animals that use silica (or glass) to build their skeleton – are found in several locations throughout the world, such as the west coast of the United States and Antarctica. However, glass sponge reefs are extremely rare, and seem to only occur in certain environmental conditions. These complex structures form when individual glass sponges grow on top of one another, eventually forming towering structures that can reach up to 20m high.
Glass sponges in Howe Sound. Photo credit: Vancouver Aquarium via squamishchief.com
The most extensive glass sponge reefs have been found in Hecate Strait, where they cover hundreds of kilometers of sea floor. Smaller reefs have since been discovered in the Strait of Georgia, Chatham Sound, and the Broughton Archipelago, with 14 of those in Howe Sound. It appears that the unusually high silica and oxygen in the water, an optimal level of water flow, food supply, and temperature, make the coast of BC and Alaska the only known coastline to support glass sponge reefs in the entire world.
The foundation of ocean ecosystems
Glass sponge reefs aren’t just pretty to look at, they are also ecologically important in a variety of ways. The 3D structures these reefs provide on an otherwise almost barren seafloor create habitat and areas of refuge for seastars, prawns, lobster, and a variety of fish, including halibut, cod, herring, and the threatened rockfish.
Sponges have the amazing ability to filter 95% of bacteria in the water. You can think of a field of glass sponges as the ocean’s natural filtration system, filtering huge amounts of ocean water every second and producing ammonia that other organisms need for life processes, thereby supporting ecosystem health.
Just as their name suggests, these sponges are fragile. Their texture is similar to meringue, so they break easily. Despite their fragility, they can live thousands of years: some reefs on BC’s coast have been aged at 9,000 years old. They likely survived, in part, because they live so far from the surface of the ocean and away from human contact. But recently humans have begun to exploit the ocean at depths which were previously unreachable, and the threats to this fragile species have intensified.
Human activities such as bottom-trawl fishing and down-rigging can easily destroy these ancient 9,000 year old reefs in seconds. Prawn and crab traps hitting the bottom, the laying of submarine cables and damage from anchors can all cause physical damage and stir up sediment in the water, smothering the sponges. Sponges stop feeding when covered in sediment, eventually leading to starvation and death. Glass sponges take over 200 years to grow just 1 metre in height, so when they are damaged, they could take hundreds of years to recover, if ever.
Protecting glass sponge reefs
A rockfish on a glass sponge reef in the Broughton Archipelago. Photo credit: Tavish Campbell, Wild First
CPAWS-BC has been working on glass sponge reef protection for over 25 years, drawing global attention, educating the public, and urging the government to protect these sites of international importance. In 2002 Oceans and Fisheries Canada (DFO) created fishing closures prohibiting bottom-trawling over the glass sponge reefs. But this was not enough. The reefs needed permanent protection. It took another 8 years before DFO announced Hecate Strait (the site where the reefs were first discovered in 1987) as an Area of Interest under consideration to become a Marine Protected Area (MPA).
Finally, in 2017, after a strong push for higher protection standards, CPAWS-BC rejoiced as the Hecate Strait & Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs MPA was established. The reefs in Hecate Strait are currently protected within 150m around them.
While this MPA and the preceding fishing closures over the Strait of Georgia reefs were major wins towards protecting our glass sponge reefs, there are over 20 glass sponge reefs in Howe Sound, Chatham Sound and the Broughton Archipelago that still need protection.
CPAWS-BC is currently leading the charge to ensure the ancient reef-building animals in Howe Sound are protected from bottom-contact fishing and undersea pipelines, both of which pose an immediate threat to their survival.
Vancouver, BC – Earlier today, the federal government quietly released its second report on progress towards protection of boreal caribou critical habitat across Canada, which once again calls out significant gaps in protection and notes an overall lack of progress across Canada. The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, BC Chapter (CPAWS-BC) notes that this report, which is two months overdue, contains very little by way of updates on habitat protection.
“If the point of these reports is to note progress on what critical habitat has been protected for boreal caribou, once again the government has missed the mark, especially in BC,” says Jessie Corey, Terrestrial Conservation Manager of CPAWS-BC.
“While it’s encouraging to see some of the progress the province has made towards delivering on their responsibilities, for example in identifying spatial priorities for protection with the Fort Nelson First Nation, all this report really does is divert attention away from the fact that in the last eight months, no new protection has been put in place on the ground where these caribou herds continue to decline,” says Corey.
Worryingly, the report mentions new protections in only a handful of provinces – Alberta, Quebec, Labrador, and NWT – but none in BC.
Additionally, in many places across the country, provinces and territories are setting new deadlines for long overdue targets, because their focus has largely been directed elsewhere. The province of BC, for example, has reported on restoration and monitoring initiatives, which are important tools in the caribou recovery toolbox, but ultimately they have no place in a report about habitat protection.
“We have a collective responsibility to protect and steward important wildlife like boreal caribou, and the federal government’s report proves that we’re not taking this responsibility seriously enough,” says Corey.
The urgency to act is greater than ever for these caribou. CPAWS-BC is calling for stricter adherence to reporting requirements for these SARA Section 63 reports, so that they can become more effective tools for tracking progress towards protecting habitat, and identifying exactly where protection is still needed.
Vancouver, BC – A newly launched public consultation process on Canada’s newest National Park Reserve, in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region of BC, is providing Canadians a long-awaited opportunity to help secure the future for Canada’s most at-risk grassland ecosystem and the wildlife that live there. The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society’s BC Chapter (CPAWS-BC) welcomes this announcement made by the federal, provincial, and Okanagan Nation governments.
“This is our opportunity to demonstrate leadership on a global scale by supporting strong, meaningful protection for this area, one of the most important conservation opportunities in Canada,” says Jessie Corey, Terrestrial Conservation Manager for CPAWS-BC. “We are quickly approaching the deadline for Canada’s 2020 biodiversity protection targets, and this will move us one step closer to meeting the target.”
Members of the public are invited to provide input on a number of important land management considerations within the proposed park area, as well as helping to identify the range of proposed land use. The working boundary for the proposal differs from past proposals by both the provincial and federal governments, and captures critical areas for habitat connectivity as well as biologically and culturally significant areas around Txasquin (Mt. Kobau) and Nkl’pula?xw (Kilpoola and Chopaka grasslands).
“The creation of this new National Park Reserve has been supported by local communities and people across the province for over a decade, so we’re thrilled to see the process moving on to this critical next step on the path towards park establishment,” adds Corey. “This National Park Reserve will play a key role in connecting endangered grasslands between Canada and the United States, and will support species survival in an ever changing climate.”
CPAWS-BC looks forward to engaging its members and partners across the country during the consultation to contribute expertise and support for this important biodiversity conservation initiative, which is open to public input until February 28, 2019.
The Gina ‘Waadluxan Kilguhlga Land-Sea-People Management Plan is a landmark step towards cooperative management in Canada. This ten-year management plan signed by the Haida Nation, Parks Canada, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada, is jointly managed through the Archipelago Management Board (AMB).
Traditionally, the Canadian government has managed areas of land and ocean separately, and people’s relationships to the land and sea are not always at the forefront of conservation planning. This new plan is different. Central to the Haida worldview that everything is interconnected, the Land-Sea-People Management Plan integrates the protection of land and sea, while acknowledging people’s well-being and need to make a livelihood. This new integrated and adaptive plan is based on principles of respect, responsibility, interconnectedness, and balance, to name a few. It is regarded as a great achievement and partnership by many.
Gwaii Haanas is a globally renowned ecological and cultural treasure. We have worked with the Haida Nation for more than 25 years to protect Gwaii Haanas and share its stories with Canadians and the world. This important step will help preserve some of the most abundant and unique nature in the world, and protect the cultural heritage of this iconic place.
-Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada
A humpback whale swims along the shoreline in Haida territory. Image credit: Duane Fuerter
The signing of the new management plan is a landmark step in partnership and conservation that has been decades in the making. Archaeological evidence suggests humans have been living on Haida Gwaii at least 12,000 years, and the Haida have an oral history of their ancestors in Gwaii Haanas dating back to the emergence of some of the most culturally significant islands in Haida Gwaii.
The first step towards official protection of this sacred area was the creation of the Haida Gwaii Watchmen Program in 1981, which was created to protect southern Haida Gwaii from the ecological and cultural consequences of harmful whaling, mining, logging, and fishing activities that had begun since Europeans arrived.
The Haida Watchmen program is a touchstone to our past and future. There are few places left on the planet where one can go to feel that sense of being a part of all things. Gwaii Haanas is one of those places.
-Suudihl (Cindy Boyko), Council of the Haida Nation, AMB co-chair
The archipelago was also recognized for its unique cultural and ecological importance with the designation of SGang Gwaay as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1981.
In 1985, the Haida Nation continued the movement to protect their lands, leading a logging blockade at Tllga Kun Gwaay.yaay (Lyell Island). Another success came when the area was designated a Haida Heritage Site in the same year.
In 1987 the Government of Canada (formed in 1867) and the province of British Columbia (formed in 1871) designated Gwaii Haanas as a national park reserve and marine protected area in the South Moresby Memorandum of Understanding and Agreement (signed in 1988).
The coastal ecosystem of Gwaii Haanas is abundant in marine life, including these mussels and starfish. Image credit: Parks Canada
While many positive steps were being made towards the protection of the area, cooperative management between the Government of Canada and the Haida Nation was put into writing in 1993, with the signing of the Gwaii Haanas Agreement and the formation of the Archipelago Management Board which has equal representation from the Haida Nation and the Government of Canada.
Then, in 2010 the Gwaii Haanas Marine Agreement was signed, and Gwaii Haanas was designated as a National Marine Conservation Area Reserve.
Gwaii Haanas is a treasure for wildlife and has great ecological, cultural, and spiritual importance. It contains upwelling areas of cold, nutrient-rich waters and is home to 42 species-at-risk and 20 different species of marine mammals! Black bears, bald eagles, salmon, and a wide variety of seabirds are found on the islands and surrounding waters of Gwaii Haanas. It is also an area of great spiritual importance to the Haida Nation, where spiritual connection is practiced through the use of traditional foods and medicinal plants.
It was common to us, just to see…thousands and thousands of tonnes of herring – big spawns, as far as you can see…and then the sea lions and the killer whales…you hear…sea lions roaring all night…
-Gidaansda (Percy Williams)
At approximately 3,466 km2, The National Marine Conservation Area Reserve contributes to about 0.06 percent of Canada’s conservation target to protect 10 percent of coastal and marine waters by 2020. However, it should be noted that only 40 percent or 106.2 km2 of the total marine protected area in Gwaii Haanas is strictly protected from commercial and recreational fishing.
A pod of orcas swims off the coast of Haida Gwaii. Humpback, minke, and killer whales are often sighted in Gwaii Haanas, along with many other marine mammals. Image credit: Duane Fuerter
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – BC Chapter (CPAWS-BC) played an important advisory role on improving the zoning plan for Gwaii Haanas which originally protected just 3 percent of the marine area. CPAWS-BC strongly recommended a substantial percent increase to ensure effective protection. Taking heed of recommendations from the ENGO sector, including CPAWS-BC and other leading environmental organizations, the zoning plan was revised to protect 40 percent of the marine area from impactful human activities. Quite an achievement!
For more information on how CPAWS-BC was involved in protecting Gwaii Haanas, visit theCPAWS-BC website. To view the Gina ‘Waadluxan KilGuhlGa Land-Sea-People Management Plan check out the Haida Nation website and Parks Canada website.
Last month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C. This report, justifiably, made news worldwide. The IPCC warns that rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes are necessary to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
Parallel to the IPCC is the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).
The full IPBES report will be coming out in May 2019, and the primer was just released. This is the first comprehensive analysis since the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment – which first popularized the term ecosystem services. The assessment will aim to inform policy and decision-making on key international goals including the Sustainable Development Goals, the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, and the Paris Agreement on climate change.
Here in British Columbia, the fight against extreme energy – namely, tar sands pipelines and the hydraulic fracking of natural gas – has brought home the importance and weight of the Paris Agreement. However, the damage caused to ecosystems and species extinction does not often make headlines. To live in a sustainable and healthy world, we’ll need to be working on both energy and ecosystems in tandem, and this report will be a key source of information to get us there.
To begin, we have to stop permitting logging in critical caribou habitat. We need to manage human access to important foraging and ranging grounds for grizzly bears. And we must designate more land to shelter biodiversity through a changing climate and increasing human and development demands.
We have an incredible opportunity to be world leaders in conservation. To do this, we must work toward meeting and surpassing the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, locally named Canada’s Pathway to Target 1. This goal states that “By 2020, at least 17% of terrestrial areas and inland water, and 10% of marine and coastal areas of Canada are conserved through networks of protected areas and other effective area-based measures.” It is not enough to protect the amount of land: we must increase the resources for our underfunded provincial parks to boost their science, monitoring, and planning capacity.
North American badgers are one of many endangered species that make their home in the South Okanagan-Similkameen.
British Columbians will soon have an opportunity to speak up for ecosystem protection. Parks Canada is expected to open public consultations for the proposed National Park Reserve in the South Okanagan-Similkameen. This future park in Sylix homelands will encompass the most endangered ecosystem type in the world: grasslands. It is also home to dozens of threatened and endangered species. By protecting this vital area, we can move forward on our commitment to protecting biodiversity for generations to come.
Every fall, the BC government launches a budget consultation process. This province-wide online and in-person forum asks for your input on the financial, and therefore fundamental, priorities for the government in the upcoming fiscal year.
Photo credit: Tori Ball
The annual budget consultation offers a key opportunity for BC’s underfunded and overcrowded provincial parks system – it’s a chance for British Columbians to have their say and make a huge impact for our protected areas!
BC’s parks and protected areas are precious habitat for wildlife and plant species, thrilling sites for outdoor adventures, and iconic parts of our natural legacy. But the crowded trails and declining species are dominating the stories coming out of the woods.
We’re in the last few weeks to g making a difference to the necessary resources our provincial parks in next year’s budget. Will you join us in standing up for BC’s parks?
5 reasons to call on your elected officials to #StandUpForParks in the BC Budget
1.Investing in conservation will help BC meet international biodiversity targets
Time is ticking closer to the 2020 International Biodiversity Targets, in which Canada has committed to protecting 17% of its land and inland waters by 2020. To halt the rapid loss of biodiversity in BC, we must ensure that more land is set aside to shelter species at risk and natural landscapes through a changing climate.
2. Well-protected, safe and accessible parks will result in happier and healthier people
Parks double as places for people to connect with nature and each other. There are immense health costs from inactivity due in part to increasingly urban and screen-based lives. Accessible nature with safe infrastructure means more people can participate in outdoor recreation and is a bonus of increased investment in parks and protected areas.
3. Protected areas drive visitor spending and local livelihoods, bringing benefits to both urban and rural communities
From Hope to Revelstoke, we don’t need to look far to see the direct economic impact that visitors bring to a community. Expanding and improving our provincial protected areas will provide benefits to communities across the province by increasing sustainable tourism. For every $1 invested in the parks system, visitor spending returns over $8 to the economy.
Snowshoers at Cypress Provincial Park near Vancouver. Photo credit: Tori Ball
4. BC Parks must keep up with demand for outdoor recreation as our tourism industry grows
From backcountry skiing to family camping get-aways, residents and visitors to BC have an ever-increasing appetite for outdoor recreation. In 2016, the booming tourism industry contributed over $1 billion in provincial tax revenue alone and contributed more to GDP than mining, forestry & logging, and agriculture & fishing industries. With an investment in staff and infrastructure, we can ensure these areas are ecologically resilient to provide both people and wildlife with safe places to roam.
5. Protected area systems support clean air, water and other ecosystem services necessary for climate change mitigation and adaptation
Last but not least, parks are necessary for watershed-wide ecological health. Protected areas improve air quality and safeguard clean water. These wild areas provide habitat for numerous species and prevent erosion. Protected areas have become increasingly important to shelter many of these natural values through an increasingly disrupted climate.
Read CPAWS-BC’s official comments to the BC Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Serviceshere. Although the official provincial consultation has come to a close, our elected leader’s door, inboxes and phone lines are still available for you to voice your opinion. It is up to all provincial leaders to speak up for parks, will you take a moment to email key ministers and your MLA?
By Sonia Singh Jind, Ocean Conservation Coordinator
Many industries require minimum standards to ensure quality and consistency. Whether it’s Apple controlling the quality of iPads, health organizations demanding safety standards for medications, or governments ensuring their public schools meet certain basic criteria, minimum standards help ensure our aims are being adequately met and create enforceability of those aims. Why shouldn’t our Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have minimum standards too?
One proposed marine protected area that really exemplifies the need for minimum standards is the Deepsea Oasis, officially known as the Offshore Pacific MPA. This 140,000 square kilometer area lays hundreds of kilometres off the west coast of Vancouver Island, and is home to unique marine life that lives on seamounts and hydrothermal vents, some of Earth’s most fascinating ocean ecosystems. Over 500 species have been discovered living on hydrothermal vents since their discovery in 1977, and an estimated 80 percent or more of these species have been described as endemic and rare (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, https://bit.ly/2ANfpxq).
The current situation
Hydrothermal vents spew nutrients and heated water in the surrounding ocean, making them biodiversity hotspots. Photo credit: Oceans and Fisheries Canada (DFO).
As it now stands, Canada has no minimum standards for its marine protected areas, including the Deepsea Oasis. This unique ocean area, which desperately needs the federal government’s protection, is currently only earmarked as an Area of Interest and a fisheries area closure for bottom-contact fisheries: all other activities, including industrial fishing and shipping, are still permitted. While there has been a moratorium on oil and gas exploration since the ’70s, it could be lifted in the near future, which poses another potential threat to the protection of this area. Given all the activities that are currently permitted, how can Canada count this fisheries closure towards our target of reaching 10 percent ocean protection by 2020?
Developing minimum standards for all Canada’s MPAs is one way to ensure that now, and in the future, all marine protected areas provide full and effective protection to the incredible ecosystems and marine life they are designed to protect. And guess what? The National Advisory Panel on Marine Protected Area Standards developed a report in August 2018 proposing minimum MPA standards to be adopted nationwide based on guidelines from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Minimum standards for Canada’s MPAs have been thoughtfully developed, we just need our federal government to adopt and apply them.
With the ongoing stresses that climate change is imposing on the ocean, including worsening hurricanes and storms, rising sea temperatures, and ocean acidification, effectively managed and enforced large marine protected areas are urgently needed. If designed properly, MPAs provide a buffer against climate uncertainty and build resilient ecological communities that will bounce back from damage better and faster.
What you can do
Studies have shown that the most effective protection takes the form of very large, long-standing, and strictly protected areas. The Deepsea Oasis has been identified as an Area of Interest by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, which is the first step on the way to being designated as a marine protected area. But it doesn’t stop there. We need to ensure that MPAs across Canada adoptminimum standards of protection so that these areas move from being “somewhat” protected, to fully protected from all extractive and destructive activities, including industrial fishing and oil and gas exploration. Only then will we be able to see the amazing potential benefits of a large, strictly protected area such as the Deepsea Oasis.
Vancouver, BC – The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) British Columbia Chapter is demanding the federal government issue an Emergency Protection Order to adequately protect and recover endangered southern resident killer whales.
Yesterday morning, the Ministers for Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and Transport Canada, as well as the Parliamentary Secretary for Environment and Climate Change Canada, announced their government’s intention to implement new recovery measures for southern resident orcas. However, these measures largely focused on monitoring, industry consultation, and expanding existing regulations, rather than taking the bold action necessary to protect the species.
“This is a completely inadequate response to the scale of the crisis facing BC’s endangered orcas,” said Bruce Passmore, CPAWS-BC Executive Director. “Southern resident killer whales are facing extinction. The federal government must implement an emergency order under the Species at Risk Act. If the federal government can’t issue an order for this species, a species that is hanging by a thread, what species would ever qualify?”
In May, the federal government announced findings under the Species at Risk Act that endangered southern resident killer whales face imminent threats to both survival and recovery, and that the government will “take immediate action to support the stabilization and recovery of the Southern Resident Killer Whales.”
Since then, the southern resident population has fallen to just 74 individuals.
“We are in the middle of a biodiversity crisis. We’re losing species at a disastrous rate,” said Passmore. “We expect our governments to take this threat seriously, but yesterday’s announcement indicates that the federal government is unwilling to fulfill their legal obligations to protect endangered species.”
A recent WWF report found that 60 percent of species globally have disappeared since 1970. Southern resident killer whales are not the only BC wildlife in crisis: southern mountain caribou are also endangered, and like orcas, the federal government has so far refused to exercise their legal authority to protect the animals.
CPAWS-BC is currently working to protect endangered orca habitat through a National Marine Conservation Area Reserve in the Southern Strait of Georgia.
Gwaii Haanas: wet wilderness. Huge rains. Swelling, deep seas. Rivers rolling from mountaintops. Water creates the life and breath of this ancient world. Gwaii Haanas is known for its diverse ecosystems, distinct flora and fauna, living Haida culture, and cooperative management model. By safeguarding these marine ecosystems along with the land itself, the Haida Nation and Canada have the potential to create one of the greatest protected areas on Earth, from mountain top to sea floor.
On June 11, 2010, the House of Commons and Senate Committees approved the proposal to establish the Gwaii Haanas National Marine Conservation Area Reserve (NMCA) and Haida Heritage Site! This was Canada’s first NMCA.
CPAWS congratulated the Haida Nation who worked for decades with Parks Canada, CPAWS, and many others to conserve this special place.
The 3500 square kilometre seascape surrounds the spectacular Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve. The land and sea ecosystems are interdependent, and both are now officially joined. This means that an area stretching from the mountain tops of Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve to 2500 metres below the sea surface in a deep, ocean valley of the National Marine Conservation Area Reserve will be conserved.
Currently, the Haida Nation and the Government of Canada have drafted the Gwaii Haanas Gina ‘Waadlux̲an KilG̲uhlG̲a Land-Sea-People Management Plan. This plan will determine the management and protection measures in Gwaii Haanas for the next 10 years, and set a precedent for decades to come.
People-land-sea
In addition to conserving this sensitive ecosystem, the Haida Nation and Canada have also protected the living culture of the Haida people. The ocean connects the Haida people, and is as much a part of their heritage, as the earth and stone of their islands.
SGang Gwaay, or Anthony Island, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and provides a stunning example of living Haida culture and the enduring relationship between the Haida and the land and the sea.
Totem poles, Gwaii Haanas
Sea urchin, starfish, and sponges of the Murchison Lagoon in Gwaii Haanas. Photo credit: Sabine Jessen.
The National Marine Conservation Area Reserve (NMCAR) in Gwaii Haanas – extending 10 kilometres offshore – protects 3,500 square kilometres of ocean.
The Queen Charlotte shelf drops 2500 metres from the islands creating an underwater “ecological edge” with biological bounty.
The Gwaii Haanas marine ecosystems support kelp forests, hundreds of species of fish, seabirds, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises and many different whales, including humpback, orca, and minke whales.
More than 6,800 species of flora and fauna have been found in Haida Gwaii.
Gray whales pit-stop in these waters on their migration to Alaska.
In Burnaby Narrows alone, over 200 species of animals, including sea stars and snails, have been identified in huge concentrations.
Over 40 species at risk can be found in Gwaii Haanas.
Where the land meets the sea in Gwaii Haanas. Photo courtesy of Parks Canada.
