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A SPECIAL INTEREST SECTION BY MEDIAPLANET
Our Water & Ocean Q&A with Minister Diane Lebouthillier Mediaplanet sat down with the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier to learn more about her 2024 strategic priorities. Can you outline the government of Canada’s efforts to protect Canada’s oceans? Canada is home to hardworking fish harvesters and processors who continue the proud tradition of producing some of the best quality fish and seafood products in the world, contributing to food security and a multi-billion-dollar industry. But as we know, the challenges they are facing are numerous. And with climate change and the resulting warming of the oceans, everything is changing underwater right now. Our oceans play a central role in regulating the Earth’s climate, and if we don’t protect them, we will not have any fish left to catch. That's one of the many reasons why our government is working to protect 30 per cent of Canada’s oceans by 2030. Canada’s efforts must also be coordinated with the rest of the world through initiatives like the historic Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework landed at COP15 in Montreal (2022). Through this, 195 countries agreed to protect 30 per cent of lands and waters by 2030. On March 5th, 2024, Minister Lebouthillier signed, on behalf of Canada, the “High-Seas Treaty” to adhere to a coordinated approach to establishing marine protected areas on the high seas beyond national jurisdiction. Since 2015, Canada went from protecting
less than one per cent of its oceans to over 14.6 per cent, by working closely with provincial, territorial, and Indigenous governments, and other partners. These commitments continue to be a priority, spearheaded by investments of up to $800 million over seven years to support up to four Indigenous-led conservation initiatives (2022) through the Project Finance for Permanence (PFP), and $976.8 million over five years to establish additional Marine protected areas (MPAs) and Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures, such as marine refuges (2021). While negotiations continue for all four PFP, in October 2023, the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, signed an agreement-in-principle with the Qikiqtani Inuit Association to create and support MPAs in Nunavut through the Inuit-led Qikiqtani PFP. The same month, Minister Lebouthillier signed the Letter of Intent for Cooperation on Pikialasorsuaq with her Greenlandic counterpart, Kalistat Lund. The Letter of Intent will allow for the implementation of a joint steering committee across Canada and Greenland for the conservation of Pikialasorsuaq Arctic polynya. Our government is also investing to address gear loss through the Ghost Gear Program. Launched in 2020, this program has
supported over 135 projects and helped retrieve: • 2,214 tonnes of lost gear • 35,329 units of gear • 857 kilometres of rope
Read the entire interview with Minister Lebouthillier on innovatingcanada.ca
And, after years of neglect by the previous government, Canada has removed 584 abandoned boats since 2017 under the Oceans Protection Plan (2016), the largest investment ever made to protect Canada’s coasts and waterways. Finally, we’re tackling illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing to maintain sustainable fisheries around the globe. In October 2023, DFO Fishery officers successfully completed the first Canadian-led high seas patrol to detect and deter IUU fishing in the North-Pacific alongside the United States Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Work to protect Canada’s oceans must and will continue. We owe it to future generations to ensure that they have healthy oceans and can continue to fish and enjoy seafood products across the country.
Growing Canada’s Ocean Economy by 5 Times Canada’s ocean impacts us all, but there’s much work that needs to be done to harness the incredible economic potential it holds.
Kendra MacDonald CEO, Canada’s Ocean Supercluster
B
y 2030, the world’s ocean economy will outpace the growth of the broader economy by 20 per cent, growing to $4 trillion. For Canada, this is one of the most important opportunities of our time — not just because of the transformational potential it holds for workers, communities, and industry, but also because of the global conversation on carbon, biodiversity, and how critical the ocean is to the health of our planet. Our ocean is critical in the transition to renewable energy, feeding a growing population, greening marine shipping for commerce, and increasingly putting Canada
at the forefront of the global economy. Further, the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy released a report stating that the ocean could contribute up to 35 per cent of the emissions reductions required by 2050.
Unlocking the ocean economy’s potential “Whether you live by an ocean or not, it has an impact on us all,” says Kendra MacDonald, CEO of Canada’s Ocean Supercluster. “We have the longest coastline in the world, vast resources, and strength in areas such as ocean AI and other advancing technologies, yet Canada’s ocean contributes less than half of the global average to
Whether you live by an ocean or not, it has an impact on us all.
national GDP. Given the magnitude of this opportunity and the urgency behind it, now is the time to unlock the potential of a $220 billion ocean economy in Canada through Ambition 2035.” As Canada’s national ocean cluster, Canada’s Ocean Supercluster connects the country’s ocean community, accelerates the development of Canadian ocean solutions to sell to the world, helps grow ocean companies, provides a global brand to support commercial opportunities for Canadian companies internationally, and will create 20,000 jobs by 2030. Last year the cluster launched a 5X growth ambition for Canada’s sustainable ocean economy.
Learn more at ambition2035.ca. This article was sponsored by Canada's Ocean Supercluster.
Publisher: Bryan Bilas Business Development Represtentive: Michaela Gallagher Business Development Manager: Chelsea Siemon Strategic Account Managers: Sierra Nardella, Olivia Delbello Country Manager: Nina Theodorlis Production & Delivery Manager: Michael Taylor Creative Director: Kylie Armishaw Graphic & Web Designer: Christina Morgan Digital & Social Media Strategist: Kristen Neals Digital Traffic Strategist: Karm Rathod All images are from Getty Images unless otherwise credited. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve The National Post or its editorial departments. Send all inquiries to ca.editorial@mediaplanet.com.