Dear Editor:
I very much hope these words are heard by all who also are interested in and serious about wanting to help preserve and protect our oceans, and the animals and mammals who live there.
These issues have been pointed out to me, and being I very much agree with them, I wanted to share these very important issues with whom it may concern.
This world-class seabird habitat – 40 per cent of all seabirds in British Columbia nest on the archipelago – deserves world-class protection.
The proposed protections are missing clear regulations on fishing, vessel-based pollution, oil spills, shipping, noise and physical disturbances, and oil and gas exploration.
Without more substantive regulations in the final plan, the Scott Islands Marine National Wildlife Area will not provide the protection needed for the most significant seabird populations.
The federal government plans to designate the waters surrounding the Scott Islands off British Columbia’s coast as a marine-protected area, but the proposed regulations will do little to protect this globally significant ecosystem.
The government needs to get this right to set the course for protecting 10 per cent of Canada’s marine ecosystems.
Janet Bruce, by email
