About federal marine conservation tools

On this page

• Overview
• Marine conservation and reconciliation
• Tools
• Marine Protected Areas and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures
• Engagement and consultation
• How these tools are used

Overview

Canada’s oceans are home to many different marine ecosystems, habitats and species. The biological diversity (or biodiversity) of these resources:

• delivers vital benefits to our environment and our health
• supports the cultures and food security of Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities
• provides Canadians with sustainable livelihoods

Ensuring that these environmental, social, cultural and economic benefits remain available to future generations is a priority for the Government of Canada.

To meet this priority, Canada identifies marine areas for conservation. We safeguard biodiversity for present and future generations. We reduce stresses from human activities by ensuring that conservation takes precedence over human use. These marine areas also provide opportunities for people to connect with nature.

Areas of the ocean^{Footnote 1} set aside for conservation include:

• marine protected areas (MPAs)
• other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), including marine refuges

Marine protected area or MPA is a broad and generic term. In Canada, federal MPAs are established using a variety of distinct protection tools:

• Oceans Act MPAs established by Fisheries and Oceans Canada under the Oceans Act
• National Marine Conservation Areas established by Parks Canada under the Canada National Marine Conservation Areas Act
• marine National Wildlife Areas and National Wildlife Areas with marine components established by Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Canada Wildlife Act

Other effective area-based conservation measure (OECM) is a term used for area-based measures other than MPAs that provide long-term biodiversity outcomes.

Three federal departments (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada and Parks Canada) work with Indigenous Peoples, stakeholders, partners and local communities to:

• identify marine areas where best-available knowledge indicates that biodiversity needs protection
• legally protect these areas using the most appropriate tool for each site

Human activities are managed to protect and conserve the ecosystems, habitats or species in these areas.

Marine conservation and reconciliation

The Government of Canada is committed to advancing reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples through a renewed nation-to-nation, government-to-government and Inuit-Crown relationship based on recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership as the foundation for transformative change.

The Government of Canada acknowledges and respects the inherent rights of Indigenous governments over harvesting and land use, according to treaties and self-governing agreements. The government further intends that marine conservation advance reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples in a manner consistent with the specific obligations within the United Nations (UN) Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, UN Declaration Act (PDF, 151 KB). In this way, marine conservation may provide opportunities for meeting Indigenous objectives and aspirations and respect areas that have spiritual, cultural or historical importance.

Consultation and engagement with Indigenous governments and communities is an important part of establishing a marine protected area. Indigenous knowledge is woven together with western science and other forms of information to create a complete picture of the area to be protected. Opportunities are available for collaborative governance and co-management that work to support Indigenous leadership in conservation.

All marine conservation tools offer collaborative possibilities. Federal departments or agencies can partner with Indigenous governments in the governance of protected and conserved areas to support vulnerable ecosystems and the conservation of culturally important areas and resources, and in collaboration with Indigenous communities in the management of these areas.

Tools

At present, the Government of Canada uses 4 main federal conservation tools to ensure that marine ecosystems, habitats and species are protected effectively. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada and Parks Canada use their own laws to establish protected and conserved areas:

1. Oceans Act MPAs, established by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, protect and conserve:

• commercial and non-commercial fishery resources, marine mammals and their habitats
• endangered or threatened marine species and their habitats
• unique habitats
• areas of high biodiversity or biological productivity
• ecological integrity

Learn more about Oceans Act MPAs.

2. National Marine Conservation Areas and National Marine Conservation Area Reserves are established by Parks Canada under the Canada National Marine Conservation Act to protect and conserve representative marine areas in the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans and the Great Lakes for the benefit, education and enjoyment of people in Canada and around the world. These areas have 8 interconnected, mutually reinforcing management goals:
   1. protect marine ecosystems and biodiversity (of primary importance)
   2. conserve cultural heritage
   3. manage use in an ecologically sustainable manner
   4. support Indigenous leadership in marine conservation
   5. contribute to the well-being of Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities
   6. facilitate opportunity for meaningful visitor experience
   7. enhance awareness and understanding of NMCAs
   8. advance effective collaboration for management

Learn more about National Marine Conservation Areas.

3. Marine National Wildlife Areas and National Wildlife Areas with marine components are established by Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Canada Wildlife Act.

Learn more about National Widlife Areas and marine National Wildlife Areas.

4. Marine refuges are fisheries-area closures established by Fisheries and Oceans Canada under the Fisheries Act. These areas meet the Government of Canada’s Guidance for Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs):

• Marine refuges provide biodiversity conservation benefits, either directly or indirectly, to ecosystems, habitats and species over the long term

Learn more about marine refuges

Marine Protected Areas and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) are 2 main categories of area-based measures Canada uses to protect and conserve ocean ecosystems:

1. MPAs are parts of the ocean that are legally protected and managed to achieve the long-term conservation of nature. MPAs may allow some current and future activities depending on their impacts to the species, habitat or ecological features being protected. In Canada, MPAs are established under various statutes, each of which has its purpose for protecting an area.
2. Marine OECMs are geographically defined areas (other than MPAs) which are:

• governed and managed in ways that achieve positive long-term outcomes for biodiversity conservation, with
  • associated ecosystem functions and services, and where applicable
  • cultural, spiritual, socio-economic and other locally relevant values

Source: Decision Adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, 2018 (PDF, 693 KB)

To date, the only type of marine OECM that has been recognized in Canada is a marine refuge. A marine refuge is a fisheries-area closure established under the Fisheries Act that meets the Government of Canada’s marine OECM criteria developed in 2022, following the CBD definition (above) and 2016 CSAS science advice.

Working together, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Parks Canada continue to conserve Canada’s marine and coastal territory as either MPAs or OECMs.

Differences between MPAs and OECMs

MPAs and OECMs are similar in that they are both area-based measures and both contribute to biodiversity conservation by prohibiting, or otherwise managing, human activities. However, there are 3 important differences:

1. The prohibitions, authorized activities and/or management actions specified for an MPA are based on its stated conservation objectives (what the MPA is designed to conserve). By contrast, a candidate OECM may be established for a variety of reasons, some of which may not be directly related to conservation. When the area is managed in ways that provide biodiversity conservation benefits over the long term, it may be recognized as an OECM.
2. Federal MPAs can be established under the authority of different federal statutes (i.e. Canada National Marine Conservation Act, Oceans Act and Canada Wildlife Act) and designated and managed through regulations or schedules. By contrast, an OECM is a policy and science-based recognition granted to an area-based measure that meets the criteria outlined in the Government of Canada’s 2022 marine OECM guidance.

3. The government plans to implement the MPA Protection Standard in most ^{Footnote 2} federal MPAs established after April 2019, by prohibiting the following industrial activities:
   • oil and gas exploration, development and production
   • mineral exploration and exploitation
   • disposal-at-sea of waste and other matter
   • dumping of fill
   • deposit of deleterious drugs and pesticides
   • bottom-trawl gear

As part of the MPA Protection Standard, Transport Canada is developing regulatory proposals to enhance restrictions on certain vessel discharges in MPAs.

The government’s marine OECM Protection Standard offers more flexibility for marine refuges by requiring that all activities be assessed on a case-by-case basis to ensure that the risks they pose to the area’s biodiversity conservation benefits are effectively avoided or mitigated.

More about MPAs

Oceans Act MPAs

Oceans Act MPAs are established by Fisheries and Oceans Canada for the conservation of marine ecosystems, habitats and species:

• Oceans Act MPAs are established through either Governor-in-Council or Ministerial Order regulations under the Oceans Act that are specific to the site being protected and the conservation objectives identified for it
• Governor-in-Council Oceans Act MPA regulations prohibit or restrict activities if they pose a risk to achieving the MPA’s conservation objectives
  • All activities are prohibited unless they are allowed, either by exception in the regulations or through approval of an activity plan
• Ministerial Order Oceans Act MPA regulations are temporary measures designed to offer protection while additional science and consultations occur
  • Existing activities may occur within the MPA for a 5-year period, until the order is either repealed or replaced by another conservation tool
• Oceans Act MPAs are established through collaboration and engagement with Indigenous governments, federal departments, provinces and territories, local communities and resource users
  • Fisheries and Oceans Canada works collaboratively with all interested and affected parties to manage activities
• Oceans Act MPAs support capacity for Indigenous governments and communities to participate in MPA establishment, management and stewardship activities
• These MPAs support sustainable uses of marine resources that are compatible with the MPA conservation objectives
• For more information about Oceans Act MPAs, including their regulations and management plans, see Marine Protected Areas across Canada

National Marine Conservation Areas

• Parks Canada is responsible for National Marine Conservation Areas (NMCAs), a type of marine protected area that protects and conserves representative marine areas in the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans and the Great Lakes:
  • NMCAs include the seabed or lakebed and the water column above, and may also take in wetlands, estuaries, islands, ice and other coastal lands
  • NMCAs are selected to represent the biology, geology, oceanography and marine and coastal habitats of their marine region, as well as cultural and historical features
  • NMCAs are established through collaboration and engagement with Indigenous governments, local communities, stakeholders, federal departments and provinces and territories, and Parks Canada works collaboratively with these bodies to manage activities in NMCAs
  • NMCAs support capacity building within coastal communities and provide opportunities for ecologically sustainable recreation, tourism and use of marine resources
• NMCAs are established under the Canada National Marine Conservation Areas Act and the boundaries of each area are established in a schedule to the Act  
• The Act prohibits oil, gas, mineral and aggregate exploration and exploitation and places strict limits on ocean disposal
• The Act requires that each NMCA is zoned and has at least 1 zone of full protection and 1 zone of ecologically sustainable use
• Parks Canada is developing general regulations under the Act which would provide Parks Canada authority to issue authorizing instruments for the use or occupation of public land in NMCAs when compatible with the NMCA policy, and the management and zoning objectives of the site 

National Wildlife Areas and marine National Wildlife Areas 

• National Wildlife Areas (NWAs) and marine NWAs are established in consultation with partners, rightsholders and stakeholders by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) under the Canada Wildlife Act and managed through Govenor-in-Council Regulations
• The Canadian Wildlife Service within ECCC supports capacity building in Indigenous communities and with other partners, and provides opportunities for collaboration in the establishment and management of NWAs and marine NWAs
• Proposed areas must meet biological selection criteria and can be established in terrestrial, coastal and/or marine areas
• They protect nationally important wildlife and wildlife habitat (in particular, migratory birds or species at risk) for the purpose of conservation, research or interpretation
• Almost all activities are prohibited in NWAs by the Wildlife Area Regulations (WAR)
  • In the Scott Islands marine National Wildlife Area, currently ECCC’s only marine NWA, activities that contravene the site’s conservation objectives are prohibited through the Scott Islands Protected Marine Area Regulations
  • Future marine NWAs will be managed through site-specific regulations under the Canada Wildlife Act
• Activities that are consistent with the purposes for which NWAs and marine NWAs are established, as reflected in the Canada Wildlife Act and management plans, may be permitted or otherwise authorized
  • These activities may include sustainable uses of marine resources that are compatible with marine NWA conservation objectives
• For more information, see National Wildlife Areas and marine National Wildlife Areas

More about OECMs

• OECMs focus on the provision of biodiversity conservation benefits although the primary purpose for establishing the area may not relate to conservation.
• Area-based measures may be established under a variety of laws, but to be recognized as OECMs they must meet the criteria set out in the federal marine OECM Guidance.
• In addition to marine refuges (fisheries-area closures that have been assessed against this guidance and recognized as OECMs), there is potential for many other kinds of OECMs, including:
  • protected historical or cultural sites that conserve the surrounding marine environment
  • application of a Species at Risk Act (SARA) critical habitat prohibition
  • marine mammal management areas
  • Indigenous-led protection or conservation of marine areas
  • sacred natural sites or important ecological components with high biodiversity value
  • areas identified for conservation by stakeholders, partners, Indigenous communities or members of the public
• Human activities, evaluated on a case-by-case basis, may occur within an OECM; however, OECMs must be managed and monitored in order to ensure that risks to an area's biodiversity conservation benefits are effectively avoided or mitigated:
  • If an area fails to provide biodiversity conservation benefits, its OECM status may be removed
• Fisheries and Oceans Canada consults Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities, affected fish harvesters and other stakeholders before fisheries-area closures are put in place, including if closures are intended to be recognized as OECMs and be in place as marine refuges for the long term
• Activities in OECMs are subject to the marine OECM Protection Standard

Creating a national conservation network

The effectiveness of each individual MPA or OECM is enhanced when a collection of conserved areas works cooperatively in a network to safeguard important ecological components of the ocean and support marine biodiversity as a whole. As described in the 2011 National Framework for Canada’s Network of Marine Protected Areas, the geographic scope of Canada’s network of marine protected areas and other conserved areas covers tidal waters of the Canadian portion of the Arctic, Atlantic and Pacific oceans from the high-water mark outward to the edge of the Exclusive Economic Zone, as well as the Great Lakes and any wetlands associated with those areas.

While this webpage is focused on providing information on the 4 main tools of federal marine conservation, it is important to note that there are other tools that can also be used to protect aquatic areas. Marine portions of Canada’s National Parks and National Historic Sites can contribute to conservation, as can marine portions of Migratory Bird Sanctuaries. Coastal areas protected by provinces and territories under their own laws can also deliver conservation outcomes.

An interactive map shows all the marine areas in Canada that have been protected and conserved by all available tools.

Engagement and consultation

Reflecting interests of governments, Indigenous Peoples, stakeholders and the general public in an MPA’s design and management increases awareness and understanding and supports conservation and the MPA’s objectives.

All MPA programs include a variety of public consultation and engagement opportunities in their establishment and management processes. For example:

• When areas for protection are first identified, the public may be invited to complete a survey, participate in a public information session or on an advisory committee
• If an MPA is established through regulations, the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement (RIAS) and the draft MPA Regulations are pre-published in Canada Gazette Part I for all Canadians to read and provide their comments
  • The draft regulations may be revised based on public feedback
• Indigenous Peoples, local communities and stakeholders have opportunities to participate in MPA establishment processes, and monitoring and management initiatives once an MPA is established

Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities, affected fish harvesters and other stakeholders are consulted before fisheries-area closures are put in place, including if closures are intended to be recognized as OECMs and be in place as marine refuges for the long term.

How these tools are used

Canada’s marine conservation tools are designed to provide strong protections for ecosystems, habitats and species, while allowing flexibility for economic activities where they do not jeopardize achievement of conservation goals and objectives.

A number of considerations can go into deciding which conservation tool to use, including:

• Where is the area located? Sometimes the geographic location makes the tool to be used obvious
• What needs protection? Often what needs protection lies within the mandate of 1 federal department or agency
• What is the specific purpose or reason for the protection? The law used often describes the purpose or lists the reasons for establishing an area
• Is there a specific threat to a single ecosystem, habitat or species, or is the area more complex? The complexity of an area may indicate the need for an MPA rather than an OECM
• Are there any features in the area that are of social or cultural importance to Indigenous Peoples or coastal communities
• Would protections support reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples? Can Indigenous aspirations be better advanced by working collaboratively
• Have partners and stakeholders in the area expressed a preference for a particular tool

The following examples indicate how these considerations could work in making decisions about first, whether the area should be established as an MPA or recognized as an OECM, and second, if an MPA is needed, which specific marine conservation tool would be most appropriate. Note that these are fictional examples designed to illustrate the processes through which decisions on tools may be made. In many cases, answering the questions above will help to determine which tool(s) may offer the best protection (as in examples 1-6). However, there is no precise formula that can be applied to select tools, because each site is unique.

While tool choices in the foregoing examples are fairly obvious, sometimes the decision is not clear-cut and several options may be available. In these cases, it is usually the purposes set out in an Act or the conservation objectives for the site that indicate which tool to use. These marine conservation tools are also aligned with the mandate of the federal department or agency that governs them, but there can be, and often are, overlapping mandates that must be managed appropriately.

Examples 7-9 illustrate how the conservation objectives or purposes of an area may be aligned with the purpose of the establishing laws and the mandate of each protected-area department.