Southern Resident Killer Whale Symposium

In October 2017, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) organized the Southern Resident Killer Whale Symposium. It brought together more than 300 experts from First Nations, governments, NGOs, industry, and the scientific community. The group that met during this event represented some of the brightest minds in our oceans community, and everything that was communicated is being taken into consideration and utilized in our action plan to protect this iconic species.

The Oceans Protection Plan

Our coasts are a key part of our identity as British Columbians, and it is our duty to protect them for the benefit of our children and grandchildren. As the Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Oceans, I am proud of the steps we are taking to preserve our coasts. Major initiatives like updating the Oceans Act and the historic $1.5 Billion Oceans Protection Plan have seen a tenfold increase in the protection of Canada’s 200,000 km of pristine coastline. The protection and restoration of our coast is crucial for all marine species, including the Southern Resident Killer Whale, which is why we are investing more than any previous government through the Oceans Protection Plan and other initiatives.

Here are some of the actions we are taking to ensure that we protect our marine environment for the benefit of future generations:

• Developing action plans for our endangered whale populations including our Southern Resident Killer Whales, the St. Lawrence Belugas, and the North Atlantic Right Whales
• Increasing our Marine Protected Areas from 1% to 10%, representing hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of new ocean protections
• Joining the UN Clean Seas Campaign and working to fight plastic accumulation in our waters
• Investing $197 Million for new scientists at DFO, creating the largest hiring of scientific capacity in the history of the Department
• A further strategic investment of $1.4 Billion for DFO in order to ensure resources are available to protect our environment and grow our ocean economy
• Introducing an oil and gas ban in the Arctic and an oil tanker moratorium on the North West coast