On Thursday, July 23^rd at 2:30PM at Government House, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society’s Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter presented the Honorable John Crosbie with a copy of Special Marine Areas in Newfoundland and Labrador: Areas of Interest in our Marine Backyards.

Holding the Marine guide up in his hands, the Lieutenant Governor said, “Everyone in Newfoundland and Labrador should read this book!”

 

“It is too horrendous to contemplate the mess we’ve got ourselves in, in respect to our environment.” His Honour, John Crosbie said, “I remember when I was the Minister of Fishery, when we had to close the cod fishery because of our failure to practice conservation.”

 

His Honour wanted to stress that this is not a blame game, “It’s a lack of common sense and facing up to the difficulties of what we have to do with fisheries in the world. It’s not the foreign fisheries fault in itself, it’s every fisherman, and it’s the system, the basic way in which the fishery has been left as a common resource and it pits one fisherman against another and everyone’s hand is raised against another.”

 

Julie Huntington, Executive Director of CPAWS’ NL chapter thanked His Honour for his endorsement. She spoke about the necessity of the guide as a resource for people in the fisheries and in the industry to know where the special marine areas are. These areas include delicate corals and the endangered wolfish. Huntington stressed that it is the job of each of us to protect the vulnerable habitat on our ocean floor so that problems such as overfishing of cod and the subsequent moratorium do not arise again.

 

The Special Marine Areas in Newfoundland and Labrador guide outlines a number of areas that are of particular interest from ecological, social or economic perspectives. It is the first document to pull together research conducted by governments, academics, non-governmental organizations and community members.

 

A total of 73 sites are illustrated in this marine guide. Each summary outlines a site description, including descriptions of marine habitats, marine wildlife, special features, existing protection and current or potential threats in each site. Although all of the sites differ, there are several common concerns such as the effects of existing and potential oil and gas development and the use of non-selective and destructive fishing gear. The marine guide provides an explanation of why it is important to protect such areas and how to reduce and eliminate negative impacts on these marine environments. The guide promotes the use of public education and engagement as tools to aid in the conservation and preservation of these marine areas.