Proposed marine conservation area in Northern Ontario could bode well for the rest of Canada’s waters

After years of work by local Indigenous communities and a partnership with the federal government, a vast area off the shores of Northern Ontario is on the precipice of becoming a marine protected area. Encompassing a portion of both James and Hudson’s Bay, the 86,000-square kilometre region would add much-needed progress to the federal government’s goal of protecting up to 30 per cent of Canada’s lands and waters by 2030. Only about 14 per cent are currently protected.

That’s partly because creating a marine protected area (MPA) can be complicated, explains Isabelle Jubinville, a marine scientist with the charity and advocacy group Oceana Canada. Every area is unique in that “there are different stakeholders and rights holders, whether it’s fisheries, coastal development, or First Nations Communities,” she says. The fishing and resource extraction industry have economic stakes in whether an area is protected, and “that can create a bit of conflict between the need to conserve and the desire to extract and develop,” says Jubinville.

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The provincial government’s role—or lack thereof—came up in the Ontario announcement, with federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault describing their absence from the process as a “lack of interest”. But Jubinville explains that usually, the ultimate decision behind an MPA is made by local Indigenous communities and the federal government. “It’s always great when the provinces are able to get involved because they have relevant ministries that handle industries that may be affected,” she says, “but it really is a case-by-case basis.”

The Northern Ontario situation is an example of the importance of letting Indigenous communities lead. “Protected area processes are really being spearheaded by First Nations. They are truly leading the way, and the federal government is tagging along with the due diligence and the regulatory frameworks,” says Jubinville. She points to efforts by Indigenous nations in Labrador and the central coast of B.C. as other examples, where new MPAs have recently gone through initial stages of approval. “They’ve taken their traditional knowledge and modern knowledge and made the case for conservation.”

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It’s important, because as Jubinville and the Oceana Canada team have learned, the literal distance of some marine regions can create an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ situation when it comes to conservation. “The fact that they are often in the water, sometimes very far offshore, it can be hard for the Canadian public to really see the value in them.”

There’s also the misconception that a protected area means no activity whatsoever, which isn’t true. Some MPAs still allow for fishing and other economic activities, even tourism, if the environment and habitats are stable enough, Jubinville says. Indeed, the Northern Ontario region’s proposal included continued hunting, fishing, and trapping rights for the nearby First Nations.

As for whether 30 per cent by 2030 is enough to protect Canada’s waters, Jubinville says it’s a reasonable start, but still the bare minimum. “Hopefully we can become more ambitious in the future as we see success with the goals that we set now.”

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