Overview of the
Saguenay-St.Lawrence Marine Park
Parcs Canada / M. Loiselle
Canadian Wildlife Federation
Learning Institut
August 2010
Visées et objectifs de conservation du parc marin
Symposium sur les AMP au Québec
Emilien Pelletier et Nadia Ménard
I. Territory
II. What is an MPA?
III. History
IV. Objectives
V. Management issues
VI. Research
VII. Discussion
Marine conservation: a global issue
(Norse,1993)
• Overexploitation of
species
• Alteration of the
physical and chemical
environnment
• …
The creation of marine protected areas is one of
the best tools to deal with these problems.
(Pauly,2002)
•Convergence of Great-Lakes-St.Lawrence, Saguenay and Atlantic waters
•Overlap of distribution limits of many species
•Ecosystems under the effect of activities withinthe hydrographic bassin
•High biodiversity of habitats and species
•Many complementary protected areas
•Local communities
•Economic activities
•1245 km2
• Three main ecosystems
•Multiple-use marine protected area
•Industrial activities (mining, gas and oil exploration) prohibited
The Marine Park: a tribute to an
exceptional territory
A meeting place
for humans and
the marine
environment
• Abundance of food resulting
from particular oceanographic
conditions
•Prey attract predators
•Tourism industry based on the
beauty of the landscape and on
marine biodiversity
The Saguenay-
St.Lawrence
Marine Park
What is a Marine Protected
Area?
‘a clearly defined geographical
space, recognized, dedicated and
managed, through legal or other
effective means, to acheive the
long-term conservation of nature
with associated ecosystem
services and cultural values.’
(International Union for
Conservation of Nature)
Three federal programs
to establish MPAs in
Canada
In 2007, Canada ranked
70th out of 228
countries in establishment of MPAs.
Aire marine protégée
Le Gully
Aire de conservation de la baleine
franche de Roseway Basin
Aire de conservation de la baleine
franche de la Baie de Fundy
Habitat essentiel de la baleine
franche de Great South Channel
Baie de
Cape Cod
Sanctuaire marin de
Stellwagen Bank
Examples of MPAs for marine mammals
Parc marin du Saguenay-Saint-Laurent
A long history of human presence
• 8000 years
• Exploitation of marine mammals
• Innu and Malécite communities pursue
subsistance activities
Tourism
• Tourism began around 1850 with scenic viewing
• Boom in the 1980’s with whale-watching
• Landscapes and whales are the area’s main attractions
• Total visitation of the Marine Park and associated sites reached 1 065 687 visits‐persons en 2006
The Marine Park:
a brief history of a long story
• 1977: First analysis of the
potential by Parks Canada
• 1987: Workshop on the
proposed Marine Park lead by
Leone Pippard
• 1988: Coalition for the creation
of the Marine Park;
International Forum for the
Survival of the Beluga;
St.Lawrence Action Plan
• 1990: Canada – Quebec
agreement
• 1998: Officially created
• 2002: Regulations on activities
at Sea in the Saguenay-
St.Lawrence Marine Park
«The purpose of this Act is to increase, for the benefit of the
present and future generations, the level of protection of the
ecosystems of a representative portion of the Saguenay River and
the St.Lawrence estuary for conservation purposes, while
encouraging its use for educational, recreational and scientific purposes.»
Parcs Canada / L. Falardeau
An innovative project and “an experiment”
• First MPA in Quebec, on of the first in Canada
• Co management Canada and Québec in the respect of
jurisdications
• Acts optimise exisiting legal tools and respect mandats
of other agencies
• Participatory management structure...in the DNA of an
MPA!
Parcs Canada / F. Di DomenicoParcs Canada / M. Loiselle
Parcs Canada / M. Loiselle
Parcs Canada / J.-L. ProvencherParcs Canada / J.-L. Provencher
Parcs Canada / M.-J. Normandin
Parcs Canada / M.-J. Normandin
Parcs Canada / M. Loiselle
Parcs Canada / M.-J. Normandin
Parcs Canada
Many activities, many players…
„Chemical prejudice‟
• Deterioration of
aquatic ecosystems
• Human health
issues
• Awareness of this
environment’s
fragility
„Physical prejudice‟
• Underwater noise from
navigation
• Collisions
• Modifcation of
hydrographic circulation
• Climat change
The age of climate change
• Increase in temperature of water coming from the Atlantic
• Visible reduction in ice
• Modifcation of hydrographic circulation?
• Increase of episodes of toxic algal blooms?
„Ecological prejudice‟
State of the Marine Park : 10 years after its
creation
• Progress significant in terms of governance, visitor
experience and scientific research
• Contaminants still present and increase of human
activities exert pressure on ecosystems
• Added value of the Marine Park is significant (prohibition
of gas and oil exploration and exploitation; management
of activities at sea; access to information)
• A first in Canada
• Recognition (Phénix de l’Environnement, 2003)
• Permitting system (max. 59; science; special activities,...)
• Speed limits (25 kts) througoutMarine Park and on observation sites (0-10 kts)
• General distance of approach (200m), adapted to COSEWIC status (400 m)
• Time limits on sites
• Minimal altitude (2000 ft)
Highlights of the Marine Activities
at sea regulation
Observation activities at sea
• Whale watching in the St.Lawrence Estuary isconcentrated in the Saguenay-St.Lawrence Marine Park
• Has become a major economicmotor for the region
• Is one of the most intensive in the world with 53 of the 59 permitsissued authorized to offercommercial whale watching frommotorized vessels on a dailybasis.
• Pleasure craft and kayakers alsopractice whale-watching
On the international scene…
«One of the best regions in the world to
observe whales is the Saguenay
St.Lawrence Marine Park (SSLMP) and the
adjacent proposed marine protected area
(MPA) in Canada…» (Scarpaci et al., 1998)
On the international scene…
«Anthropogenic activities (e.g. shipping,
whalewatching and other tourism and
recreation activities) create intense traffic in
this area, which poses cumulative threats
(collisions of vessels with marine
mammals, disruption of feeding/social
activities, exposure to pollutants, etc) to
marine wildlife that utilize this region»
(Scarpaci et al., 1998)
Fin whale
Special concern
St. Lawrence Beluga
Threatened
Blue whale
Endangered
Concerns with regards to activties at sea
• The presence of boats on critical mating, feeding and resting areas;
• Targeting of specific cetacean communities that are repeatedly sought out for prolonged, often close up encounters;
• The intensive whale watching of endangered species
Striving for the sustainability of
whale watching
• Five criteria developed by WDCS for
defining responsible WW
Criterion 1: A prime recreational
and educational experience
• Motivates participants to care about
cetaceans and the sea and to contribute to
marine conservation;
Criterion 2: An experience that
seeks to reduce the impact on
whales
This includes :
• respecting relevant regulations or codes of conduct (distances, time spent);
• ensuring vessels are fit for the purpose;
• approaching the animals with extreme care and attention;
Criterion 3: Opportunities for
researchers
• Gather scientific information and
disseminate findings to managers and the
public;
Criterion 4: An experience built
around a naturalist or nature
guide
• To provide accurate information, help to
find the whales and describe their
behaviour, and successfully build the bridge
between the urban participant and the sea;
Criterion 5: Active community
involvement
• Enabling communities and regions to have a
financial as well as a personal interest in
whale watching and the conservation of
cetaceans and the sea
Key message
• Whale watching offers a privileged
platform to enhance awareness of threats
to marine mammals and to the ocean
• Marine Protected Areas generally have an
educational mandate
• Whale watching in a Marine Protected
Area should lead to way to showcase
responsible ww and allow participants to
learn about the marine environment
Educational program
• 6 land-based sites established by park managers (3 federal, 3 provincial)
• Many regional municipal and NGO-run sites
• 83 % of visitors in the Marine Park area participated in at least one interpretation activity (2005)
• Initiating collaborations with the whale-watching industry to promote on-board education
Scientific research : an essential tool at the
Marine Park
• Collaboration with scientists from universities, ministries, namely the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Environment Canada, and from non-governmental organisations allowed to undergo almost a hundred research projects in various fields
• Provides essential information in decision-making with regards to observation activities at sea and fishing
• Scientific knowledge allows to update interpretation activities, education programs and information to communities
Scientific knowledge was essential in the establishment of a
protected area in a marine environment
Priorities for research
• Impact of fishing on populations and ecosystem processes
• Understanding ecological processes that sustain biodiversity
• Monitoring state of the Marine Park (ex: contamination; oceanographic conditions) and efficiency of management
Habitat studies and prey monitoring
• Acquisition of hydroacoustic and oceanographic data to study
the distribution and abundance of different prey types and
predators
• Priority for the first 3 years given to habitats for species at
risk
Study of the influence of variability of pelagic prey on
the maintenance of marine wildlife biodiversity in the
Marine Park1) Monitor the abundance and the availability of prey and predators (birds and
marine mammals), on a seasonal and yearly scale, as an indicator of the
state of the Marine Park
2) Determine the caracteristics of prey aggregations at sites of whale
aggregations to understand requirements of critical habitats for species at
risk (beluga, blue whale, fin whale)
3) Document special events regarding changes in the distribution and
abundance of whales
4) Couple these observations with oceanographic conditions and properties of
water masses (e.g. CTD profils)
5) Provide information to the community (e.g. education, interpretation)
• Echosounders : emission of sounds
in the water and listening of the
echos reflected off the seafloor and
living organismes
• Scientific echosounders allow to
mesure the abundance, density, size
and behavior of living organismes
• Used throughout the world to
evaluate stock abundance of marine
resources and to study marine
ecosystems
The technology
Image : SIMRAD
Artefact}
Layer of fresh water
Photo Parcs Canada / J.-L. Provencher
}
Echogram (38 kHz) recorded aboard l’Alliance at the margin of Tadoussac Bay on August 4th
2009. The three humpback whales photographed at the time of the passage of the boat were located in the area of the yellow and red patch (high density of small fish).
}Layer of
saltwater
Overview of preliminary results obtained through the study of prey undertaken by Parks Canada at the Saguenay-St.Lawrence Marine Park
seafloor