Publications

On this page

• Guidance for projects near water
• Monitoring and reporting
• Position statements
• Technical and scientific publications
• Frameworks and strategies

Guidance for projects near water

• Fish and fish habitat protection policy statement: how we interpret and apply regulatory and non-regulatory tools under the Fisheries Act
• Measures and procedures for avoiding and mitigating risks to fish and fish habitat
• Codes of practice: guidance for routine works, undertakings and activities to mitigate risks and comply with the Fisheries Act and Species at Risk Act
• Policy for applying measures to offset harmful impacts to fish and fish habitat: guidance on the use of offsetting measures to counterbalance the death of fish or the harmful alteration, disruption or destruction of fish habitat
• Guidelines to develop a plan to apply measures to offset harmful impacts to fish and fish habitat: guidance about offsetting measures, including guiding principles, acceptable types of offsetting, and offsetting plan development
• Guidelines for establishing and managing fish habitat banks: guidance on the establishment, management and operation of fish habitat banks to fulfil offsetting requirements

For a complete list of project planning guidance and tools, visit the Plan section.

Monitoring and reporting

• Annual report to Parliament on the administration and enforcement of the fish habitat protection and pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act
• Habitat Highlights: examine threats to fish and fish habitat in specific areas of Canada, with a primary focus on freshwater ecosystems
• Public report on the Fisheries Protection Program monitoring efforts
• Fisheries Act Registry
• Fisheries Act implementation accomplishment highlights (2019-2024)

Position statements

• Consideration of cumulative effects in support of decision making on Fisheries Act authorizations concerning fish and fish habitat protection: explains how we consider potential cumulative effects together before deciding whether to issue an authorization
• Management of death of fish (other than fishing), under the Fisheries Act and the Species at Risk Act: outlines our position and approach with respect to regulating works, undertakings and activities (other than fishing), that will likely result in the death of fish (including listed aquatic species at risk)
• Management of existing facilities and structures under the Fisheries Act and the Species at Risk Act: outlines our position and approach about the application of the protection provisions of the Fisheries Act, in combination with relevant provisions of the Species at Risk Act and the Aquatic Invasive Species Regulations, to an existing facility or structure.

Technical and scientific publications

• Best management practices for the protection of freshwater fish habitat in Newfoundland and Labrador
• A Technical Manual for Small Stream Fish Habitat Improvement in Newfoundland and Labrador
• Task Force on sustainable tidal energy development in the Bay of Fundy - Final report
  • DFO's approach to assessing risk of death of fish from collision with tidal energy devices
  • Guide to environmental monitoring for tidal energy devices, Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia

Frameworks and strategies

• Framework for identifying, establishing and managing ecologically significant areas: guide to how we propose to apply the Ecologically Significant Areas provisions of the Fisheries Act
• Framework to identify fish habitat restoration priorities: guide to a consistent national approach with regional flexibility to identify priorities
• Risk Management Framework Overview: guide to how risks to fish and fish habitat are assessed and managed by DFO