Rapport de suivi écologique intermédiaire de l'aire marine protégée du Banc-des-Américains portant sur les indicateurs prioritaires

Abstract

In March 2019, a marine protected area (MPA) was established under the Oceans Act (SOR/2019-50) in the Banc des Américains area. This area was also granted proposed aquatic reserve status under Quebec’s Natural Heritage Conservation Act as part of the Canada-Quebec joint project agreement regarding the Banc-des-Américains MPA. Following MPA status designation, an ecological monitoring plan must be developed, and monitoring must be implemented to provide information on the achievement of the conservation objectives (CO) for the MPA. There are three conservation objectives for the Banc-des-Américains MPA: 1. conserve and protect benthic habitats; 2. conserve and protect pelagic habitats and forage species and 3. promote the recovery of at-risk whale and wolffish species (Gauthier et al. 2013). A preliminary version of the ecological monitoring plan for the MPA underwent peer review in 2018. At the time, an initial list of indicators was drawn up for the conservation objectives and pressures, and the surveys that could be used as a source of data were identified (Faille et al. 2019; DFO 2019a). Following the peer review, in January 2019 a scientific monitoring committee (SMC-BDA) was established to finalize the choice of indicators and associated measures, calculate the results, and identify methods for assessing status and trends in the MPA. A regional peer review held in 2021 (Faille et al. 2023; DFO 2023a) provided the opportunity to review the methodology for presenting the indicator results, including the spatial and temporal scales to be considered and methods for evaluating the status of each indicator. It was recommended that an interim ecological monitoring report focusing on specific priority indicators be produced every three years. The goal is to have a succinct and realistic interim report that can be produced at shorter intervals, thereby providing management with results in a timely manner. A complete monitoring report with updated information on all the indicators will be produced at a lower frequency (e.g., every 10 years). In 2023, the Marine Planning and Conservation Division (MPC) of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), Quebec Region, asked Science to produce an interim ecological monitoring report for the Banc-des-Américains MPA based on the methodology identified at the peer review in 2021 (DFO 2023a). Accordingly, Science assessed the status of the priority indicators using the data collected until December 2022, thereby providing information to help the MPC team ensure optimal management of the MPA. This Science Response Report results from the regional peer review meeting held on January 31, 2024 to discuss the Intermediary Ecological Monitoring Report of the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area on Priority Indicators.