Research Document - 2015/028
Key elements in the development of a hierarchical marine ecological classification system to support ecosystem approaches to management in Pacific Canada
By Robinson, C., Boutillier, J., Biffard, D., Gregr, E.J., Finney, J. Therriault, T., Greenlaw, M., Barrie, V., Foreman, M.,Pena, A., Masson, D., Bodker, K., Head, K., Spencer, J., Bernhardt, J., Smith, J., and Short, C.
Abstract
The focus of this research document is to provide an understanding of the key elements needed to develop a hierarchical marine ecological classification system to support an ecosystem approach to management for the Pacific region of Canada. Ecosystem approaches to management would contribute to management activities such as:
- development of a network of MPAs for the conservation of marine species and habitat diversity at regional scales; and,
- coastal zone management and planning activities at local scales.
The ultimate goal of this document is to provide resource managers with a plan for a collaborative, coordinated, pragmatic and science-based approach for generating inventories and maps of marine species and habitat diversity and distribution at appropriate spatial extents and resolutions necessary to manage the anthropogenic stressors in the marine ecosystem. To accomplish this goal the hierarchical marine ecological classification system needs to meet the following criteria:
- be based on spatial scales that meet management objectives;
- identify species and habitat diversity within both the pelagic and benthic realms;
- be informed through the application of a suite of tools that analyze and summarize biotic and abiotic data; and,
- be designed so that it is adaptive and can readily incorporate new information and data as they become available.
Twenty case studies of British Columbia based marine planning applications were assessed along with a comparative literature review of global applications such as the Global open oceans and deep seabed (GOODS) biogeographic classification (Vierros, Cresswell et al 2009) to better understand the types of models, expert systems, and classification systems presently in use to describe species and habitat diversity in the pelagic and benthic realms of Pacific region, and to understand information/data requirements and gaps. The assessment revealed that:
- species and habitat diversity mapping in Pacific region tends to consist of one-off, single-species based projects using relatively disjunct data sets;
- no single habitat classification system has been used in the benthic or pelagic realms;
- a few different species distribution models have used in the region with no clear guidance on ‘best’ practices or structured application,
- relatively little research has been directed at pelagic realm diversity; and,
- large gaps in multibeam acoustic data, particularly interpreted bottom backscatter data, are limiting descriptions of benthic realm diversity.
Based on these assessment findings, we recommend the following actions: that a pilot study to assess species distribution models be conducted; that standards for data collection be developed; that data storage and sharing agreements between resource management agencies and stakeholders be arranged; and finally that a modified Australian-based ecosystem-level classification system with a biotic focus be adopted and pilot-tested in Pacific region.
The hierarchical marine ecological classification system that we recommend is the end-result of discussions with more than 20 experienced practitioners in Pacific region, and ultimately will only succeed through further collaborative interactions between oceanographic, hydrographic, geological and biodiversity researchers and resource managers, and through adaptive modification of elements within the framework.
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