Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, pursuant to subsection 35(3) of the Oceans Act a, makes the annexed Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area Regulations. S.C. 1996, c. 31
Interpretation
The following definitions apply in these Regulations.
Marine Protected Area means the area of the sea that is designated by section 2. (zone de protection marine)
vessel has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (bâtiment)
In the schedule, all geographical coordinates (latitude and longitude) are expressed in the North American Datum 1983 (NAD83) reference system.
Designation
The area of the sea depicted in the schedule that is bounded by a series of rhumb lines drawn from points 1 to 4 and then back to point 1 is designated as the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area.
The Marine Protected Area consists of the seabed, the subsoil to a depth of five metres and the water column above the seabed.
Management Zones
The Marine Protected Area consists of the following management zones, each of which is depicted in the schedule:
Zone 1, which is bounded by a series of rhumb lines drawn from point 1 to point 5, then to points 6 to 16 and then back to point 1;
Zone 2a, which is bounded by a series of rhumb lines drawn from point 5 to point 2, then to point 3, then to point 11, then to point 10, then to point 9, then to point 8, then to point 7, then to point 6 and then back to point 5; and
Zone 2b, which is bounded by a series of rhumb lines drawn from point 16 to point 15, then to point 14, then to point 13, then to point 12, then to point 4 and then back to point 16.
Prohibited Activities
Exceptions
The following activities may be carried out in the Marine Protected Area if they are carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Fisheries Act and the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act, as well as their regulations:
fishing, other than commercial fishing, that is authorized under the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations;
in Zones 2a and 2b, commercial fishing — for any species other than capelin, herring, mackerel, sand lace, krill or copepods — by means of a trap, longline or handline or by angling; and
in Zones 2a and 2b, recreational fishing by means of a handline or by angling.
Navigation may be carried out in the Marine Protected Area subject to the following conditions:
a vessel must not anchor in Zone 1; and
in the case of a vessel that is of 400 gross tonnage or more or certified to carry 15 persons or more, it must not discharge sewage as defined in subsection 1(1) of the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations or release greywater as defined in subsection 131.1(1) of those Regulations.
Any activity may be carried out in the Marine Protected Area if it is carried out for the purpose of public safety, national defence, national security, law enforcement or to respond to an emergency.
Any activity that is part of an activity plan that has been approved by the Minister may be carried out in the Marine Protected Area.
Activity Plan
Any person may submit to the Minister an activity plan for the carrying out of any scientific research or monitoring, habitat restoration, educational or commercial marine tourism activity in the Marine Protected Area.
The activity plan must contain
the person’s name, address, telephone number and email address;
if the activity plan is submitted by an institution or organization, the name of the individual who will be responsible for the proposed activity and their title, address, telephone number and email address;
the name of each vessel that the person proposes to use to carry out the activity, its state of registration and registration number, its radio call sign and the name, address, telephone number and email address of its owner, master and any operator;
a detailed description of the proposed activity and its purpose, the methods or techniques that are to be used to carry out the activity and the data to be collected;
the geographical coordinates of the site of the proposed activity and a map that shows the location of the activity within the boundaries of the Marine Protected Area;
the proposed dates and alternative dates on which the activity is to be carried out;
a list of the equipment that is to be used, the means by which it will be deployed and retrieved and the methods by which it is to be anchored or moored;
a list of the type and quantity of samples that are to be collected;
a list of any substances that may be deposited during the proposed activity in the Marine Protected Area — other than substances that are authorized under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 to be deposited in the navigation of a vessel — and the quantity and concentration of each substance;
a description of the adverse environmental effects that are likely to result from carrying out the proposed activity and of any measures that are to be taken to monitor, avoid, minimize or mitigate those effects;
a description of any scientific research or monitoring, habitat restoration, educational or commercial marine tourism activity that the person has carried out or anticipates carrying out in the Marine Protected Area; and
a general description of any study, report or other work that is anticipated to result from the proposed activity and its anticipated date of completion.
The Minister must approve an activity plan if
the scientific research, monitoring or habitat restoration activities that are set out in the plan are not likely to destroy the habitat of any living marine organism in the Marine Protected Area and serve to
increase knowledge of the biodiversity or biological productivity of the Marine Protected Area,
increase knowledge of the habitat of any living marine organism in the Marine Protected Area or of the ecosystem structure and function of the Marine Protected Area, or
assist in the management of the Marine Protected Area; and
the educational or commercial marine tourism activities that are set out in the plan
are not likely to damage, destroy or remove from the Marine Protected Area any living marine organism or any part of its habitat, and
serve to increase public awareness of the Marine Protected Area.
Despite subsection (1), the activity plan must not be approved if
any substance that may be deposited during the proposed activity is a deleterious substance as defined in subsection 34(1) of the Fisheries Act, unless the deposit of the substance is authorized under subsection 36(4) of that Act; or
the cumulative environmental effects of the proposed activity, in combination with those of any other past and current activities carried out in the Marine Protected Area, are such that the activity is likely to
destroy the habitat of any living marine organism in the Marine Protected Area,
adversely affect the biodiversity or biological productivity of the Marine Protected Area,
adversely affect the ecosystem structure and function of the Marine Protected Area, or
adversely affect whales or wolffish.
The Minister’s decision in respect of an activity plan must be made within
60 days after the day on which the plan is received; or
if amendments to the plan are made, 60 days after the day on which the amended plan is received.
If the Minister approves an activity plan, the person who submitted it must provide the Minister with an activity report within 90 days after the last day of the activity. The report must contain
the data collected during the activity;
a list of the type and quantity of samples that were collected, the date of their collection and the geographic coordinates of the sampling sites;
an evaluation of the effectiveness of any measures taken to monitor, avoid, minimize or mitigate the adverse environmental effects of the activity; and
a description of any event that occurred during the activity and that was not anticipated in the activity plan, if the event could result in the disturbance, damage, destruction or removal from the Marine Protected Area of any living marine organism or any part of its habitat.
The person must also provide the Minister with a copy of any study, report or other work that results from the activity and is related to the conservation and protection of the Marine Protected Area. The study, report or other work must be provided within 90 days after the day on which it is completed.
Coming into Force
These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.
The schedule consists of a map depicting the location of the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area and includes a table setting out the geographical coordinates of the points establishing the boundaries of the Marine Protected Area, as described in subsection 2(1) of the Regulations, and the three management zones, as described in section 3 of the Regulations.
Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area