Great Bear Sea MPA Network
The coast shapes the identities of communities and residents.
Photo by Iain Robert Reid
For those who live in the Great Bear Sea region, the ocean is a way of life.
The productive, cold waters of the Pacific Ocean are globally significant, supporting an incredible mix of habitats – open ocean, vibrant estuaries, dense kelp forests, expansive coral and sponge beds, and deep fjords – which, in turn, have sustained coastal communities for thousands of years.
Photo by Thierry Boyer
We’ll protect our ocean by:
Protecting, restoring and maintaining key species and ecosystems
Photo by Janene Brierley-Green
Supporting the continuity of First Nation governance, management, and harvesting practices
Photo by Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Restoring and maintaining fish stocks for sustainable fishing
Photo by Barb Dinning
Growing sustainable economies
Photo by Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Areas Served
The Great Bear Sea MPA Network in the Northern Shelf Bioregion off the coast of British Columbia will achieve important conservation outcomes, safeguard critical species and biodiversity, support prosperous communities and economies, and sustain and rebuild habitats and species populations that are vital to First Nations’ ways of life.
million
hectares of significant cold-water ecosystems
species at risk to be protected
%
of the area under the MPA Network
Goals
The Great Bear Sea MPA Network is the first of its kind in Canada, and the largest Indigenous-led, collaboratively governed MPA Network in the world.
This innovative initiative is built on decades of planning and consultation to design an approach that benefits people and nature through six goals.
Protect and maintain biodiversity
Contribute to social, community and economic stability
Conserve and protect fishery resources and habitats
Conserve and protect traditional use and cultural heritage
Maintain and facilitate tourism and recreation
Provide opportunities for scientific research, education and awareness
Funding
The MPA Network is funded by the Great Bear Sea Project Finance for Permanence (PFP), a $335 million investment from the Government of Canada, the Province of British Columbia and philanthropic supporters, which provides durable, long-term funding to manage 10,000 hectares of marine ecosystems and support sustainable economic development on the coast.