Baykeeper pushes marine protection for Bay of Fundy

Matt Abbott, the Conservation Council’s Fundy Baykeeper, attended a lively open house by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) on how to best protect the Bay of Fundy in St. George on Oct. 26, 2016.

“The Bay of Fundy is a special place. I think all of us that live here know it,” Abbott told Information Morning Saint John.

Abbott said he wants to see Ottawa move forward with plans to classify many of the bay’s sensitive areas as marine protected areas.

On the heels of the federal government’s pledge to increase protected marine and coastal areas, the DFO has identified sixteen ecologically sensitive areas in the Bay of Fundy that according to Abbott could meet the requirements for federal protection.

“It sort of hits above its weight ecologically if you think about it. It’s really not a huge area but the tides here drive a really unique and diverse ecosystem,” Abbott said.

The federal government has promised to increase protected marine and coastal areas from 1.3 per cent to 5 per cent by 2017 and to 10 per cent by 2020.

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