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Failure To Properly Administer the Oceans Act, 1996 and the Fisheries Act, 1985 Has Created A Negative Impact on
Marine Life in British Columbia
Elena Khan

Introduction

Discussion

Canada borders three oceans and has the longest coastline in the
world (Fisheries & Oceans, 2017). Marine life is what defines
Canada and especially the Province of British Columbia. Canada’s
economy, environment and social fabric are linked to the oceans and
their resources. Canada’s oceans are not only home to an immense
web of marine life, but they also generate half of the oxygen people
breathe, act as thermostats to regulate the Earths’ temperature, and
support the majority of the planet’s diversity (Fisheries & Oceans,
2017). Oceans cover 71 per cent of the Earth’s surface and contain
97 per cent of its water. As of today, oceans have absorbed more than
90 per cent of emissions- trapped heat since the 1970s (Fisheries &
Oceans, 2017).

Three federal departments, Fisheries and Oceans, Parks Canada and
Environment Canada have been working together to develop in 2011 a
national Planning Framework. The aim of this framework was to
establish a bioregional representative system of MPAs. However, the
mandates for the federal agencies did not line up fully. The federal
financial and human resources were inadequate and budget cuts have
caused difficulty of trying to meet international obligations and
protect marine life through the establishment of MPAs (Lopoukhine,
2013).

Background and Problem
The Oceans Act, 1996 (the “Oceans Act”) provides a framework for
modern and future oceans management initiatives, and calls for the
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to lead and facilitate the
development of national ocean management strategy. Additionally,
the Fisheries Act, 1985 (the “Fisheries Act”) provides for the
management and control of fisheries, the conservation and protection
of fish and marine life from pollution, disturbance, alteration or
destruction. Canada has adequate legislation in place to effectively
protect its oceans and the life they support. This legislation has been
amended a number of times to provide better protection for marine
life, however, it continues to decline at an alarming rate

Methods
This research used secondary sources collected from the Justice
Institute of British Columbia (JIBC) Library EBSCO Discovery
Service (EDS) to collect most academic peer reviewed articles, and
Google Search engine for additional up to-date information to ensure
the currency of the research. The rationale for selecting articles for
review was based on titles, content balance (biased/ unbiased view),
relevance, currency and issues addressed. Additionally, the author’s
credibility, expertise and references were taken into consideration.

Results/Findings
After reviewing the literature, the following concerns were shared by
many researchers: the lack of marine protected areas (the “MPAs”),
contamination, shortage of scientific studies and strategy plans.
Canada has fallen short of meeting commitments and targets for
implementing key aspects of the Oceans Act and the Fisheries Act
since their enactments in 1996 and 1985, respectively (Bailey et al.,
2016). Lopoukhine (2013) reported how Canada has good intentions
and it did commit to the United Nations (the UN) Agreement to
protect 10 per cent of its marine life back in November 2015,
however, little has been done to successfully accomplish the set
goals, with only 0.9 per cent protected as of 2017 (UN, 2018).

The issue of recovery strategies and action plans appeared to be
another common shared view among different researchers. Fisheries
and Oceans Canada are responsible for preparing recovery strategies
and action plans for endangered species, however as of today, only 4
of the 14 species have such plans, and none of them have yet been
executed (Office of the Auditor General of Canada, 2018). To
emphasize the concern, killer whales have been listed as endangered
since 2005 and little has been done to address this issue.

Conclusion and Recommendations
It is evident that Canada has developed legislation and policies over
the years to effectively protect its oceans and marine life they support.
Recent academic studies have shown that the government is not
overseeing the legislation enough to provide adequate protection,
either directly by undermining the set forth policies or indirectly by
cutting resources to government ocean science. The reviewed
literature revealed how the researchers for the past ten years have been
urging the federal government to take responsibility committed under
the UN Agreement in 2015 and execute the set plans, rather than
simply planning and setting it aside.
Despite the above, it is important to note that there is not enough
secondary sources out there, therefore this research was constrained to
only few recent academic case studies.
The following are proposed recommendations:
1) Canada should work together with local communities (First
Nations) and other international organizations to implement a set
of marine protected areas beneficial to marine mammals.
2) Canada must annually report its achievements and its contribution
towards meeting the global commitment of protecting 10 per cent
of its marine life as set out in the UN Agreement.
3) Canadian government should establish a proper budget and
encourage scientists to conduct different studies beneficial for
marine life protection.
Example of action plan progress:

References
Bailey, M., Favaro, B., Otto, S., Charles, A., Devillers, R., Metaxas,
A., (2016). Canada at a crossroad: The Imperative for realigning
ocean policy with ocean science. Marine Policy, 63 53-60.
doi.org/10.10116/marpol.2015.10.002.
Office of the Auditor General of Canada. (2018). Protecting marine
mammals. Report- 2: Retrieved from http://www.oag-bvg.gc.ca

Bachelor of Law Enforcement Studies

Justice Institute of British Columbia March 2019