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Musquash Estuary has been accepted as an Area of Interest The Musquash Marine Protected Area Planning Group today released a letter from the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Hon. Herb Dhaliwal, in which he informed the group that Musquash Estuary has been accepted as an Area of Interest in DFO's Marine Protected Area process. This is the first official step towards final designation of the area as an MPA, protected under the Canada Oceans Act. Speaking on behalf of the Planning Group, David Thompson, coordinator of the Musquash MPA campaign for the Conservation Council of New Brunswick, said: "The Musquash Marine Protected Area Planning Group is very pleased to receive news that the Musquash Estuary west of Saint John has been accepted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada as an Area of Interest (AOI). Furthermore, we wish to thank Fisheries and Oceans Minister Herb Dhaliwal for his support and encouragement as we begin the official process to establish the first marine protected area (MPA) in the Bay of Fundy. "The Musquash MPA Planning Group has worked diligently for the last year to have the Musquash Estuary accepted as an AOI, and now we are finally on board and moving. We have been particularly encouraged by the strong community support for the proposed MPA, and all the assistance we have received from community residents during the past year. Our challenge now is to keep the process moving towards a successful MPA designation. "In the next few weeks we will begin to work with DFO officials to develop a management plan and gather the information necessary for Minister Dhaliwal to recommend to the Government of Canada that the Musquash Estuary become a MPA." The Musquash MPA Planning Group was formed one year ago, a few months after the Conservation Council of NB formally nominated the Musquash Estuary as a Marine Protected Area under the Canada Oceans Act. The role of the Planning Group is to oversee the process towards MPA designation and to ensure public participation in the development of a management plan for the proposed MPA. The Musquash MPA Planning Group includes Musquash, Lorneville and Prince of Wales residents, Musquash LSD, Lorneville Community and Recreation Association, a local Craft Guild, Fundy North Fishermen's Association, Conservation Council of NB, Union of NB Indians, Ducks Unlimited, and relevant provincial and federal authorities. Bob Rutherford, speaking on behalf of DFO's Oceans Act Coordination Office in Halifax said: "DFO will continue to work closely with the Musquash MPA Planning Group, the Government of New Brunswick and others to ensure the health of this important coastal ecosystem is maintained. Musquash is the Maritimes' second inshore AOI in the Marine Protected Areas program under the Oceans Act. Identification of a site as an AOI is the first step in the Department's evaluation process to identify and protect important ecological areas in the marine environment. On June 23, 1999 DFO announced support for conservation efforts in Basin Head, PEI, the first inshore AOI. DFO has adopted a learn-by-doing approach to the development of MPAs. DFO is supportive of the Musquash Estuary conservation initiative which is a demonstration of how local interests, conservation organizations and government can work together to protect important coastal ecosystems. Together with the Musquash MPA Planning Group and others, DFO will conduct studies on this coastal ecosystem to help understand the function and role of the estuary in the Bay of Fundy. As well, DFO will contribute to the assessment of activities and their impacts in and around the estuary to help determine the conservation and protection requirements for the area. This process will be a collaborative effort with input from all interested parties." The impetus for the Musquash MPA nomination came from a four-year project of the Conservation Council in partnership with the Island Institute and Conservation Law Foundation in Maine. Through their Gulf of Maine Estuaries Restoration Project, part of the larger initiative called Restore America's Estuaries supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts, these organizations surveyed the health of habitat in all major estuaries in the Gulf of Maine. The Conservation Council surveyed estuaries in the Bay of Fundy, the northern reach of the Gulf, from St. Croix to Lobster Bay in Nova Scotia. Estuaries rank along with coral reefs and rainforests as some of the most biologically productive and important ecosystems in the world. They are major contributors to the health of marine ecosystems and provide vital habitat to a wide range of marine species, birds and mammals. The survey revealed that virtually all major Fundy estuaries have been significantly altered and degraded from a multiple of sources such as pollution, coastal development, marsh drainage, tidal flow blockage, and bottom trawling. The single exception to this dismal rule is the Musquash Estuary. Consequently, when the Canada Oceans Act came into force in 1997 with MPA regulation provisions, CCNB embarked on a campaign to have Musquash designated as an inshore MPA. After gaining support from the Fundy North Fishermen's Association and key community organizations, in October 1998 CCNB formally nominated Musquash under the MPA process. Since that time, the Planning Group was formed, and CCNB has completed biological surveys and a cultural and economic profile of the area, and initiated the process to have a geographic information system established for the estuary. In addition to funds from The Pew Charitable Trusts and Restore America's Estuaries, CCNB has garnered financial support for the Musquash MPA Campaign from The EJLB Foundation, World Wildlife Fund and the Millennium Bureau of Canada. For more information: David Thompson, Musquash MPA Campaign Co-ordinator |
