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Judi Lynn

(160,218 posts)
Fri Nov 27, 2020, 05:43 AM Nov 2020

Canada Gives BP Okay to Explore in Marine Conservation Area


How protected is a marine refuge, really, if oil drilling is allowed?
by Brian Owens
November 27, 2020 | 650 words, about 3 minutes

Earlier this month, the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board accepted a bid from oil company BP to explore for oil and gas in an area that includes part of Atlantic Canada’s largest marine conservation area.

The move to open part of the Northeast Newfoundland Slope Closure marine refugee to oil and gas exploration has alarmed conservation groups. It has also highlighted how the confusing variety of approaches that Canada is using to reach its marine conservation goals can result in wildly varying levels of protection.

In August 2019, Canada surpassed its goal of protecting 10 percent of its ocean area—the current total stands at around 14 percent—and reiterated its goal of protecting 25 percent by 2025, and 30 percent by 2030. But not all protected areas contributing to this total are created equal. The Northeast Newfoundland Slope Closure, for example, is a marine refuge, not a marine protected area (MPA).

“Marine refuges are established as fisheries management tools,” says Jordy Thomson, senior marine coordinator at the Ecology Action Centre in Nova Scotia. “They protect fish habitat from actions like bottom trawling, but they don’t have the same full suite of protections as MPAs. Oil and gas drilling are not kept out.”

More:
https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/canada-gives-bp-okay-to-explore-in-marine-conservation-area/
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Canada Gives BP Okay to Explore in Marine Conservation Area (Original Post) Judi Lynn Nov 2020 OP
Seems that's pretty crappy, no? sprinkleeninow Nov 2020 #1
Boo, hissss! Duppers Nov 2020 #2
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