Council Responds to DFO

New protections set for local marine refuges

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is setting new boundaries for local marine refuges, and residents and protectors of Átl'ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound get to have a say.

The Marine Conservations Target Initiatives Update (MCTIU), which can be read HERE, was developed and released this fall by DFO in order to receive First Nations and other stakeholder input on the Glass Sponge Reef-Rockfish Conservation Area (GSR-RCA) project, along with a similar project in the Scott Islands marine national wildlife area.

The GSR-RCA project has direct bearing on the waters off Lions Bay, which currently contain a number of marine refuges for both glass sponges and rockfish. Lions Bay Council has held two special meetings on the subject in November, as councillors work to formulate a response from the Village on a short timeline.

At the 2025 Howe Sound Community Forum, Councillor Neville Abbott reported on DFO's intention to consolidate the existing marine refuges, combining the rockfish and glass sponge conservation areas into a larger, more enforceable marine refuge.

Presently, the waters off Lions Bay hold three protected GSRs and one RCA, and DFO's proposal for the area is as follows:

• Currently ranked in the top 50% of RCAs and is one of the top seven that could benefit from improvement due to high quality habitat surrounding the existing RCA closure.

• Reduce boundaries that intersect rockfish and glass sponge reef habitat.

• Combine three GSR & one RCA closures into one marine refuge by extending the northern portion of the RCA to include Brunswick Point GSR to reduce spillover.

• Strengthening protections would better protect rockfish and their habitat and allow for connectivity.

DFO proposed changes to GSR-RCA protections off the coast of Lions Bay. Source: DFO's MCTIU.

In the two special meetings, Council took a closer look at the proposed changes and listened to the input of local residents.

Climate Action Committee member John Robb brought forward the report to Council at the November 10 meeting (page 3 of the evening's agenda) and made a number of recommendations. As a diver and conservationist, Robb has long been involved with the health of Howe Sound, and has offered to assist in the drafting of the letter of response to DFO.

He said that Howe Sound in 2025 is considered one of British Columbia's most dramatic environmental recovery stories. The region is now a designated UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, when only forty years ago Howe Sound was considered severely polluted, suffering the legacy of over a century of heavy industry including mining, pulp and paper production, and chemical processing.

In his report, Robb notes that glass sponges are vital to the local ecosystem, with the sponge reefs serving as habitat, nursery, refuge, and feeding grounds for a remarkable variety of marine life, including rockfish, prawns, crabs, sea stars, and shrimp. The reefs have up to three times more species that nearby areas, vastly improving the biodiversity of the area. And since the sponges are also extraordinary filter feeders, they help remove bacteria and excess organic matter, and contribute to improved water quality.

Robb points out that healthy rockfish communities serve as both predators and prey in marine food webs, helping maintain balance by controlling populations of smaller fish and invertebrates while also providing food for larger species such as lingcod, sea birds, and marine mammals. He says the presence of strong rockfish populations contributes to the overall stability and productivity of marine communities.

Ruth Simons is an executive director of the Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative Society and a founding member of the Howe Sound Committee Forum. Simons said she has had a long-standing dialogue with DFO about the challenges of maintaining the health of the Sound.

She offered a couple of clarifications to wording in the letter of response from the Village, and said the point is to request that DFO increase enforcement of the existing and proposed marine refuges. She also said that if there is concern with regard to existing mooring buoys that provisions exist for DFO to work with other legal authorities, leaving open the possibility of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Village and DFO if needed. She said the MCTIU initiative is an important one, nearly doubling the protected areas within the Sound from three to six percent.

Also present was Adam Taylor, a representative of the Marine Life Sanctuaries Society, which was instrumental in seeking glass sponge protection. He noted that the proposed changes should not affect private moorage, as those applications go through the province, and not DFO. He said he supports DFO's goal to consolidate the existing areas to allow the whole general area to recover. He noted that the larger protected area makes enforcement easier, and that Bowen Island has just passed a motion to support the initiative.

Discussion circled around the capacity of DFO to enforce the fishing prohibitions in protected areas, and concern that the new boundary bisects Kelvin Grove Beach, and would be better drawn near the cliffs that are south of the area.

After discussion, it was agreed to rework the letter, including input from the speakers as well as Council before meeting again.

At the November 13 meeting, Robb presented a redraft of the letter of response, taking into account concerns stated at the November 10 meeting, (page 36, HERE.)

The letter speaks in support of the initiative, but makes three comments:

• As increased protection measures may limit some Lions Bay residents from using prawn or crab traps in the current RCA, Council asks that DFO apply adequate enforcement to monitor and prevent non-resident commercial and recreational fishing or invertebrate harvesting within the Marine Refuge.

• Council seeks clarification with regard to the long-established 1,000 foot Lions Bay Marine Foreshore, where many residents have moorings or docks. While permits are currently issued by the province and not DFO, they are asking for assurances that the new Marine Refuge will not make repair or permitting of resident docks and moorings more challenging than at present.

• Council requests that the current southernmost border of the RCA be retained, as the newly drawn border bisects Kelvin Grove Beach, and increases the complexity of enforcement.

In a surprise development at the meeting, CAO Ross Blackwell said that DFO had extended the timeline for a response from the Village to November 21, and Council agreed to readdress the issue on November 18 at the next regular Council meeting.

At that meeting, Blackwell said that he had spoken Heather Keith, Senior Manager of Climate Action & Environment in West Vancouver, who told him that Council's letter reflected West Vancouver's opinions, although they do not plan to send an official response.

It was agreed that the letter be signed and sent on behalf of Lions Bay Council.

Have thoughts to share about the health of the Sound? Leave your comments below, or email us at editor@lionsbaywatershed.ca 

Like what you're reading? For as little as $5/month, you can support local independent journalism by subscribing to The Watershed HERE.