Tag Archives: Laurentian Channel Marine Protected Area

Laurentian Channel Marine Protected Area – Fishing activity singled out for extra blame

I have read many Government of Canada documents. Some of them caused me to roll my eyes, some of them caused chuckles, some were examples of great work, and there has been one document that was the most insulting thing I have ever read. That insulting document (click here) is the reason I write this letter. The Canadian government is about to designate a part of the ocean as a marine protected area (MPA).,,, You can read the document and see for yourself, but the document can be summarized as saying that commercial and recreational fishing are the reason fish species are in danger of extinction and the humans who prosecute those activities have to be stopped. The document is saying that if we continue to dig up the ocean floor, if we continue blast the crap out of the North Atlantic with air guns, and if we continue to ram into whatever whales and turtles we see, it’s no big deal. However, if we bait one hook or set one net or set one crab pot, and if we do it for either recreational or commercial purposes, we are scum. Harvey Jarvis, Portugal Cove. click here to read the letter 08:26

Industry has too much sway in Marine Protected Areas, says scientist

After a decade of deliberation, an ecologically sensitive area in the Laurentian Channel in the Gulf of St. Lawrence is entering the final stage of Marine Protected Area (MPA) status approval.
But Rodolphe Devillers, a geography professor at Memorial University who specializes in marine conservation, is skeptical about just how much protection the designation will provide. At just under 12,000 square kilometres, the Laurentian Channel Marine Protected Area will be the largest in Canada, and the third protected area in Newfoundland and Labrador. It falls between Cape Breton and Newfoundland’s southern shore, along the edge of the 3PS fishing zone.,,, But Devillers said the industry has far too much influence on the establishment of these areas. click here to read the story 09:35