New protected marine reserve, larger than P.E.I., to be established on B.C.’s Central Coast

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An enormous national marine conservation reserve is being established on British Columbia’s Central Coast, spanning an area larger than Prince Edward Island.

The protected area, named Mia-yaltwa Ha’lidzogm hoon, is the result of an agreement between six coastal First Nations and the provincial and federal governments.

An official says the area is around 6,700 square kilometres and will be operated by Parks Canada along with its Indigenous and federal partners.

The reserve is within the Great Bear Sea, a diverse marine ecosystem that covers more than half of B.C.’s coast and includes glass sponge reefs, salmon, killer whales and migrating humpbacks.

A federal official says all fisheries with the exception of bottom trawling may continue in the area.

The conservation area becomes the sixth of its kind in Canada and the second in B.C. after the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, which covers around 1,500 square kilometres of land.

An aerial shot of some small islands. — The Mia-yaltwa Halidzogm hoon national marine conservation area reserve on B.C.’s Central Coast pictured in this undated photo. It spans from Gil Island in the north to just south of Calvert Island, in the south. (Markus Thompson/Thalassia)

Though its boundaries aren’t finalized, a Parks Canada representative says the marine reserve spans from near Gil Island in the north, to Calvert Island in the south, extending inland as far as Bella Coola.

The six Indigenous partners — the Wuikinuxv, Nuxalk, Kitasoo Xai’xais, Heiltsuk, Gitxaała and Gitga’at Nations — declared the area an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area, which affords them a key role in stewarding conservation efforts through Indigenous governance.

The area’s name means “realm of the salmon, home of the salmon.”

The federal government says marine conservation reserves are distinct because they fall within areas that are subject to Indigenous land claims, and their status could change depending on the outcome of those claims.

Its establishment will become official under the Canada National Marine Conservation Areas Act, a process that is expected to take several years.

This map is centered on the Central Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. The map area extends from the south end of Banks Island and Gil Island in the north, south to the northern tip of Vancouver Island. — A draft outline of the new Mia-yaltwa Ha’lidzogm hoon protected area on B.C.’s Central Coast. (Parks Canada)

The next step of the agreement is the creation of a collective management board and a zoning plan that sets out what activities are allowed to occur in the area, with the intent of allowing fishing and tourism to continue.

“Establishing this protected area will help marine ecosystems, biodiversity, and culturally important values to flourish,” says a news release issued Friday from Parks Canada, the Fisheries Department and the First Nations partners.

“It will also support Indigenous and coastal communities, as well as the many marine sectors, including fisheries, that depend on a healthy ocean.”

The Fisheries Department will continue to manage and enforce regulations in the area.

Federal Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin says in the release that the conservation area is part of the government’s goal to conserve 30 per cent of Canada’s marine and coastal waters by 2030.