Spatial Conservation Action Plan

1. Eastern Scotian Shelf Integrated Management (ESSIM) Initiative Spatial Conservation Action Plan ESSIM Stakeholder Advisory Council (SAC) July 2007 …a shared commitment to work together for our ocean and our future…

2. Outline • Action Plan Context • Defining spatial conservation planning • Tools to achieve spatial conservation • Action Plan Outline

3. Action Plan Context • Strategic Plan with agreed upon objectives • Many objectives can be achieved using spatial conservation planning • National commitments for biodiversity conservation (MPAs, SARA)

4. Spatial Conservation Planning • Measures, specific to a place, designed to address conservation objectives. • Range of spatial tools

5. Tool kit - examples • Codes of conduct/ Best practices developed for an area • Community conserved areas • Fisheries closures • Areas to be avoided • Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas • SARA critical habitat provisions • Oil and gas area “exclusions” • Ballast water exchange zones • Oceans Act MPAs • Parks Canada NMCAs • National Marine Wildlife Areas Link to MPA Action Plan

6. Existing spatial conservation areas

7. Existing spatial conservation areas

8. Areas of conservation value - examples • Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs) • Core groundfish areas • CPAWS NS Special Areas • WWF-Canada/CLF mapping (groundfish lifestages, cetaceans, primary productivity etc) • Benthic classification • High naturalness areas • Others…

9. EBSA map

10. Other initiatives to map ecological values

11. Example Objective: At risk species protected and/or recovered Possible tools: • SARA\Fisheries Act • Areas to be avoided • Oil and gas exclusion zone • “mpa” Strategy: Right whale important and critical habitat identified through recovery strategy Spatial conservation measure: Species protected in important/critical habitat areas

12. Example Objective: Biomass and productivity of harvested and other species are healthy Strategy: critical juvenile areas identified through management plans, EBSAs Spatial conservation measure: juveniles protected in critical areas of aggregation • Possible tools: • gear-specific or seasonal closures • community conserved area

13. Action Plan Intent • Recognize and plan around existing areas, using enhanced stewardship/management where necessary • Identify additional areas that will need to be addressed by relevant legislative authority or through community led conservation approaches

14. Action Plan Goals • Define and build common understanding of spatial conservation planning • Synthesize existing information on areas of conservation value and existing sites • Identify areas of convergence and perform gap analysis • Build agreement on areas of conservation priority and suggest options/tools • Inform ongoing initiatives (ex. MPA Action Plan) and steward implementation

15. Action Plan Tasks • Formalize Action Plan and form working group • Assemble information on areas of conservation value and existing spatial conservation areas • Identify objectives best addressed with spatial tools • Appraisal and gap analysis • Identify areas of agreement on conservation priority through stakeholder workshop • Prioritization/put forward recommendations for spatial conservation tools

16. Questions • How do you see this Action Plan helping to move the ESSIM Plan forward? • What links do you see to other Action Plans? • What other information/perspectives could be incorporated? • What role do you see yourself/your sector playing • In developing the Action Plan? • Attending a workshop in Fall?