Wildlife: Protecting Marine Areas

June-July 1995

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.

The Marine Life Sanctuaries Society of BC

by Iain Dawson Cuthbert

Canada boasts the longest coastline in the world, yet we currently have no permanent legislation in place to protect our rich coastal heritage for future generations. At present, Canada trails far behind several other nations in its efforts to preserve and protect the marine environment and its wildlife. Unlike New Zealand, Australia, France, Great Britain, South Africa, the United States and Mexico, Canada does not have a single permanent, comprehensive marine protected area (MPA), nor the legislation to create one. That may be changing soon, however, thanks largely to the efforts of a dedicated grassroots organization called the Marine Life Sanctuaries Society of British Columbia (MLSS). The Society has succeeded in creating Canada's first temporary MPAs on the B.C. coast, and is spearheading the initiative to create the federal legislation necessary to enable interested communities to establish their own permanent marine sanctuaries.

The Marine Life Sanctuaries Society was founded by Andy Lamb and Bernie Hanby, two experienced amateur divers with a passion for the colourful and exotic wilderness that lies beyond the shoreline. Increasingly frustrated with the trend towards the declining size, diversity and abundance of marine fish species all along the coast, they formed the Society in 1989. In the five years since, more than two hundred divers and nature enthusiasts have joined in their efforts to protect Canada's marine ecosystems.

For many divers, the highlight of an excursion into the waters around Vancouver Island is spotting a giant Pacific octopus or a ghostly-looking wolf eel. But ask Society founders Lamb and Hanby what they like to see the most in British Columbia's coastal waters and the answer is invariably "rockfish!". There are close to forty species of rockfish in these waters, and they come in all sizes and colours. Not surprisingly, the Society adopted the rockfish as their symbol. While Andy admits it's not as dramatic as the grizzly bear or the killer whale, he points out that it is a vital component of the marine coastal ecosystem. Rockfish tend to settle in near-shore areas and stay put for life. As such, they are particularly vulnerable to harvest by anglers and in-shore fisheries.

"Since the live rockfish fishery started, the coastal populations have been fished out in areas," says Bernie Hanby. "The commercial fishery is hammering the shallow reefs and moving north as the reefs are stripped. These fish are sedentary-they stay on reefs, and they won't move on. They can grow to one hundred and forty years of age, but we won't see animals that size come back in our lifetimes." Like rockfish, the wolf eel, denning giant octopus, decorated warbonnet and many other marine animals and plants are reef dwellers. They spend most or all of their lives in one place, and cannot simply move on if conditions deteriorate. Like the grizzly bear or the spotted owl, the only way to protect these animals is to preserve their habitat. Only MPAs, where any harvest or activities destructive or damaging to marine life are prohibited, can provide adequate refuge from anglers, in-shore fisheries and development. Sanctuaries are also the only viable, long-term measure that will enable preservation of our natural coastal heritage. But setting entire areas aside from harvesting represents a significant departure from conventional fisheries management in Canada, where temporary restrictions are used to protect individual species during specific time periods. Unfortunately, not only do fishing regulations occasionally fail to protect valued stocks (as any Atlantic fisherman can tell you), but, by considering single species in isolation, they ignore the fundamental integrity and interdependence of natural, functioning marine ecosystems.

Bill Ballantine, New Zealand's premiere marine refuge proponent, cites fisheries management as a classic example of 'the tragedy of the commons.' Dr. Ballantine, who travelled to Vancouver Island in May to lend his support to the Society argues that "if any resource is communally owned, then it is in constant danger of short-term rip-offs, booms followed by collapses. In marine fisheries there are the added difficulties of never knowing enough about stocks, and of the participants being largely occupied with the mechanics of getting a catch and staying alive while doing so." The net result is that fisheries closures almost invariably come too late, usually after stocks have been severely depleted or permanently devastated. In the past three years, overfishing in the Strait of Georgia has necessitated indefinite closures for commercial harvesting of ling cod and abalone. And while fishermen will resist the designation of 'harvest-free' zones, most will agree that it makes sense to set some areas aside to preserve marine life, if only to provide a little crop insurance. It might make a difference in whether or not there will be anything left for the next generation of fishermen.

Fisheries selectively harvest the largest individuals of desired species. By targeting those animals that are reproducing the population, fisheries walk a narrow line between this year's harvest and next year's stock recruitment. Marine protected areas (MPAs) offer harvest refugia, areas where sexually reproductive animals are not threatened. The larvae produced by these fish are often widely dispersed, allowing MPAs to effectively seed surrounding areas with new recruits. By targeting desirable top predators such as rockfish, fisheries dramatically reduce the diversity of coastal waters. Removing predators offsets the intricate balance of natural systems, allowing particular prey species to become very abundant and out-compete other species. Studies done in South Africa have shown that the density of fish species is five times greater inside MPAs than in surrounding waters where rockfish are harvested. In addition to maintenance of genetic diversity and protection from over-fishing, MPAs provide excellent opportunities for recreation, education, and scientific research.

Developing public support for the protection of coastal habitat is a Society priority, and the task has not been an easy one, perhaps because the marine environment lies beyond most people's daily experience. For many, the occasional glimpse through the lens of an underwater photographer is all they ever see of the underwater world: it is not a world with which most people have any direct or sustained contact. Perhaps as a result, while a national campaign to preserve 12 percent of terrestrial parkland has been well received, there has been little emphasis on the need to protect our seldom-seen marine environment.

Capturing the public eye was a big factor in Society's choice of Whytecliff Park for the first MPA. The Park's size and its proximity to an urban area would place it fairly low on any biologist's list of potential marine sanctuaries, but what it lacks in biodiversity, Whytecliff makes up for in visibility. Surrounded by the panoramic estates and rustic villas of West Vancouver, the small waterfront park is a stone's throw from bustling Horseshoe Bay. As a result, the Whytecliff Park proposal quickly gained momentum, receiving support from the Municipality of West Vancouver, the Vancouver Public Aquarium, the local diving community and the Canada Trust Friends of the Environment Foundation.

The Society also concentrated on Whytecliff Park for political reasons. Although it was declared Canada's first 'Marine Park Game Preserve' in 1973, it had no legal or legislative definitions, and regulations for fishing or other uses were changed. Thanks to the public groundswell twenty years later, on Oceans Day (July 24) Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) regional director Pat Chamut designated Whytecliff Park Canada's first true MPA, closing commercial and sport fisheries as of January 1 and April 1, 1994, respectively. Marine orientation signs have since been erected along the shoreline to reinforce public support through knowledge and appreciation of the marine environment, and to share the success of the Society's first triumph. However, despite the official MPA designation, fisheries closures at Whytecliff must be renewed annually, and until MPA legislation is passed, no permanent marine sanctuary can be created.

Meanwhile, the Society has swung its attention to a larger site at Gabriola Pass, near Nanaimo. With an area of about twenty square kilometres, the proposed Gabriola Pass MPA is almost ten times the size of Whytecliff Park; yet both sites are relatively small for MPAs. By comparison, the 13,850-squre-kilometer Monterey Bay Sanctuary includes more than 750 kilometres of California coastline. Nonetheless, Gabriola Pass marks a significant step in the right direction, as such tidal passages are rich with nutrients and support an abundance of marine life. Society founder Andy Lamb has identified more than 230 different species of colourful, exotic-looking creatures inhabiting the current-swept pass, from the tiny moss-headed war bonnet and decorator crabs to the prehistoric-looking red Irish lord and the enormous gumboot chiton-the largest of its kind anywhere in the world. Andy is confident that the actual number of species in the Pass is well over 300, a prime example of why divers around the world are drawn to the British Columbia coast.

In the absence of national MPA legislation, several classifications of marine coastal parks have been designated by various agencies and levels of government. Many of these parks and reserves have been created to protect threatened or endangered species and their habitat, such as the killer whales at Robson Bight, and the belugas in the Saguenay fiord. For example, the Canadian Parks Service may create conservation areas with a marine component, such as Vancouver Island's Pacific Rim National Marine Park Reserve, or South Moresby/Gwaii Haanas National Marine Park Reserve in the Queen Charlotte Islands. Marine Park Reserves may also be created under joint federal-provincial agreement, as is the case with Saguenay Marine Park Reserve in the St. Lawrence, Québec. Although these parks all have powerful conservation and wildlife protection components, the Parks Service does not have control over the marine water column. That is strictly the jurisdiction of Department of Fisheries, the only agency that can regulate commercial and sport fishing in salt waters. Similarly, provincially-designated Ecological Reserves with marine conservation components, such as Race Rocks and Robson Bight do not have authority over all activities in the water column. In some cases, special renewable fisheries closures may be obtained from DFO to prevent fishing, but no permanent ban is in place.

National marine parks and ecological reserves create a perception among the public that marine sanctuaries already exist in Canada, and that marine life are fully protected in designated areas. In British Columbia, further confusion tends to arise through the prolific designation of provincial 'Marine Parks'. These areas have no marine conservation component, and have been established largely through pressure from recreational boaters looking for nice places to anchor. Nonetheless, visitors are often under the false impression that these areas and their natural constituents are somehow protected. Because angling is permitted at all the different types of marine parks and reserves, none of them can be considered true MPAs. For marine sanctuaries to be effective, they must be created under legislation that provides for complete protection of all resident marine life in perpetuity.

With their thoughtful and proactive approach to marine conservation, the Society has prompted co-operative interaction among government agencies, commercial, sport and aboriginal fisheries and the public. Society president Gordon Heath is optimistic about the rising tide of support for MPAs, coming as it does from so many different public and private sector groups. "It's extraordinary how much attention we are getting these days," says Mr. Heath. "Government representatives and everyone from Greenpeace to the World Wildlife Fund have been calling us, looking to get involved." According to Mr. Heath, the relentless efforts and constant pressure for action from the Society have spawned a formal government working group dedicated to addressing the MPA issue in Canada. The recently formed working group includes members of DFO, Parks Canada, the B.C. ministries of Environment (under the Protected Areas Strategy), and Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Renewable fisheries closures such as the one obtained for Whytecliff Park are the immediate priorities of the Society, which hopes to safeguard marine life in the candidate sanctuary areas while preliminary MPA legislation is being drafted. Society member Richard Paisley, an adjunct professor of law at the University of British Columbia's Westwater Research Centre, is the Society's 'legal eagle', guiding the Society through all the legal hoops, including drafting letters to obtain official action. Like other Society members, Richard brings his particular expertise to the Society so that he can help to create legal precedents and legislative mechanisms through which an entire network of MPAs can be established throughout Canada. The Society encourages people to work together to identify candidate MPA sites in their own areas. The onus will be on local communities and municipalities to organise support and carry forth the initiative, and the Society will help steer the way. Once established, marine sanctuaries will provide excellent opportunities for recreational diving, education and science. But most importantly, they'll afford some much needed breathing space for the rockfish, ling cod, and other creatures of the sea that are fast disappearing from Canadian waters.

Iain Cuthbert is an aquatic biologist on the board of the MLSS, Vancouver Island chapter.