ACZISC COASTAL UPDATE

ACZISC COASTAL UPDATE

(Note: Here’s proudly announced global governance/control, complete with tentacles in every

agency and every place, impacting every person. Just look at the email addresses, agencies

and websites, originating from distant parts of America, Canada and the United Kingdom, AND

the United Nations. How 'local' can this scheme be? "Think Global, Act Local" has arrived at the

gates, looking like a twenty-first century Trojan Horse of language deception.)

February 2004

This and previous Updates are available at http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/new

From: Michael Butler mbutler@kilcom1.ucis.dal.ca

To: ACZISC.Associates.Ro-Z.do@KIL-SM-1.UCIS.Dal.Ca

Subject: ACZISC COASTAL UPDATE – FEBRUARY 2004

Date: February 17, 2004 3:37 AM

Dear ACZISC Associates,

Here is the ACZISC COASTAL UPDATE for your interest and consideration. Please feel free to

circulate it among your own networks. This and previous Updates are available at

http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/new

Please note that the inclusion of items in the Coastal Update does not imply endorsement by the

ACZISC Secretariat and member agencies.

The ACZISC was formed in 1992 to help establish a coastal zone information infrastructure in Atlantic

Canada as a precursor to integrated coastal management. The Committee is multi-disciplinary and

multi-sectoral with representation from eight federal departments, four Atlantic provincial

governments, academia and the private sector.

Please refer to the ACZISC website at http://www.dal.ca/aczisc for details.

ACZISC COASTAL UPDATE - FEBRUARY 2004:

UPCOMING ACZISC MEETINGS

•              25 June 2004: ACZISC Meeting #42, St. John’s, NL [Newfoundland, Canada], in conjunction

with Coastal Zone Canada 2004, 27-30 June also in St. John’s.

For information on CZC 2004, access http://www.czca-azcc.org/index2.htm

•              15-16 September 2004: ACZISC Meeting #43, Fredericton, NB [New Brunswick, Canada]

•              19-20 January 2005: ACZISC Meeting #44, Halifax, NS [Nova Scotia, Canada]

•              18-19 May 2005: ACZISC Meeting #45, Charlottetown, PEI [Prince Edward Island, Canada]

For information on the ACZISC meetings, email the ACZISC Secretariat at leblanc@ca.inter.net

INCORPORATING CLIMATE CHANGE INTO THE EIA PROCESS

ClimAdapt http://www.climadapt.com is a partnership involving private sector environmental firms,

 non-governmental associations, and three levels of government.

Some ClimAdapt members have developed a methodology for integrating climate change into an

environmental impact assessment (EIA) process that forms the basis for the “Practitioner’s

Guide to Incorporating Climate Change into the Environmental Impact Assessment Process”

– available at:

http://www.climadapt.com/Climatapt%20PDFs/EIA%20Guide%20Oct20%202003.pdf

TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT IN NOVA SCOTIA

In June 2003, the Nova Scotia Government released “Towards a Sustainable Environment”,

also known as the Green Plan, which outlines the Government’s approach to sustainable

environmental management.

*****31 March [2004] is the deadline for commenting on the more than 60 environmental

commitments proposed in the policy document.

The Green Plan and the consultation workbook are available at:

http://www.gov.ns.ca/greenweb/towards/

ST. JOHN’S HARBOUR CLEAN-UP

The purpose of the multi-phased St. John’s Harbour Clean-up Project in Newfoundland is to treat

the wastewater before its discharge into the Harbour.

As required by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, an environmental assessment of the

Harbour Project was carried out in 2003.

The Executive Summary of the Final Environmental Impact Statement and the Screening Report for

the Clean-up Project - Phase 2 are both available at:

http://www.stjohns.ca/cityservices/environment/harbour/cleanup.jsp

OCEAN ZONING: CAN IT WORK IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC?

A Workshop entitled “Ocean Zoning: Can it Work in the Northwest Atlantic?” is scheduled for 10-11

May 2004 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The Workshop is designed to explore the concept and effectiveness of ocean zoning as a tool

for integrated management of marine resources and activities. It will provide an opportunity to

learn from ocean zoning experiences internationally and to consider their application to the

Northwest Atlantic region.

For information, access http://www.oceanzoning.ca

CALL FOR PAPERS - 6^TH BAY OF FUNDY WORKSHOP

2 April 2004 is the deadline for submitting abstracts for the 6^th BoFEP Workshop scheduled for

29 September - 2 October 2004 in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia.

The Workshop is sponsored by the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP).

Presentations may deal with any aspects of the physical, chemical, biological and social

sciences pertaining to the Bay of Fundy. For information, access:

http://www.bofep.org/2004_workshop.htm

WASTEWATER REGULATION AND SHELLFISH AQUACULTURE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

The purpose of this study, commissioned by the Centre for Shellfish Research, Malaspina-University

College, was: to evaluate how effectively British Columbia has addressed the problem of wastewater

pollution in the marine environment; to consider the experience of comparable shellfish-growing

jurisdictions, including Atlantic Canada; and to identify potential avenues for legal and policy reform.

The paper is available at:

http://research.mala.bc.ca/docs/RSA/Wastewater.pdf

A NEW OCEANS ACTION PLAN FOR CANADA

The Speech from the Throne, which opened the 3^rd Session of the 37^thParliament of Canada on

2 February 2004, outlined the [Canadian] Government’s priorities. These include “opportunities

to maximize the potential of our vast coastal and offshore areas through a new Oceans

Action Plan.” The full

Speech is available at http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/sft-ddt.asp

The Action Plan was on the agenda of the federal Deputy Ministers Interdepartmental Committee

on Oceans, which met on 10 February for the first time in several years.

ATLANTIC LITTORAL INTELLIGENCE RECONNAISSANCE AND SURVEILLANCE

EXPERIMENT (ALIX)

ALIX is designed to integrate tactical, operational and strategic decision-making within the

Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) as well as other interested government

departments.

An Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) will conduct a mission of about thirty hours’ duration and

provide information from sensors such as electro-optical, infrared and multi-mode maritime radar.

ALIX flights will focus on the Arctic; the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Canadian Forces

Base at Gagetown, New Brunswick; and the Grand Banks. There is potential to support

the needs of other departments with respect to surveillance requirements that coincide with

the ALIX geographical areas.

For information, access:

http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/alix.doc and http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/alix.ppt.

REDUCING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS IN CANADA

Canada’s Climate Change Plan challenges all Canadians to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions

by one tonne or 20 percent each year – see:

http://www.climatechange.gc.ca/english/publications/announcement/challenge.html

A key way to achieve this goal is to cut the energy used by cars. Each year, Natural Resources

Canada presents the EnerGuide Awards in nine different classes to the manufacturers of the most

fuel-efficient new vehicles sold in Canada. For information, access:

http://www.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca/media/newsreleases/2003/2003105a_e.htm

LARGE-SCALE SALINITY CHANGES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN

Scientists have analyzed a wealth of salinity measurements collected over recent decades along a

key transect in the Atlantic Ocean, from the tip of Greenland to the tip of South America.

They observed that surface waters in tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean regions have become

markedly more saline.

Simultaneously, much of the water column in the high latitudes of the North and South Atlantic has

become fresher.

These large-scale, relatively rapid oceanic changes suggest that recent climate changes, including

global warming, may be altering the fundamental planetary system that regulates evaporation

and precipitation and cycles fresh water around the globe.

For information, access:

http://www.whoi.edu/institutes/occi/currenttopics/abruptclimate_rcurry_pr.html

GROUNDWATER IN FRESHWATER-SALTWATER ENVIRONMENTS OF THE ATLANTIC COAST

This USGS [US Geological Survey] report describes the occurrence and flow of freshwater and

saltwater in groundwater systems of the Atlantic coastal zone; reviews the causes, modes, and

management of saltwater intrusion; and illustrates some of the mechanisms of ground-water

discharge and contaminant loading to coastal ecosystems. It also illustrates traditional

approaches for monitoring and managing saltwater intrusion, and highlights some of the innovative

approaches being used to enhance the sustainability of coastal groundwater resources.

This and other water-related reports are available at:

http://water.usgs.gov/pubs/circ/

CANADIAN OCEAN SCIENCE NEWSLETTER

The Newsletters are an initiative of the Canadian National Committee for SCOR (Scientific Committee

for Oceanic Research) and are available online at:

http://www.cmos.ca/scor/newsletters.htm.

If you wish to subscribe to this newsletter, send an email to listserv@lists.mcgill.ca with the following

message:

SUBSCRIBE OCEAN-NEWSLETTER.

ALIEN INVADERS IN BALLAST WATER - NEW CONVENTION ADOPTED AT IMO

A new international convention to prevent the potentially devastating effects of the spread of harmful

aquatic organisms carried by ships’ ballast water has been adopted by the International Maritime

Organization, the United Nations agency responsible for the safety and security of shipping and the

prevention of marine pollution from ships.

The [legally binding] instrument was adopted at an international conference held from 9 to13 February

at IMO’s London Headquarters.

For information, access: http://www.imo.org/home.asp

WWF REPORT ON FINANCING MARINE CONSERVATION

A new WWF report, “Financing Marine Conservation”, outlines 30 mechanisms that could raise

billions of dollars for marine conservation. It identifies various financing sources such as: money

from fishing subsidies -- estimated at up to US$20 billion -- for marine protection rather than

unsustainable fishing practices; direct allocations from government budgets; conservation

fees from tourism, for example from diving and cruise ship activities; and fines paid by the ocean’s

polluters.

The report is available at:

http://www.panda.org/downloads/marine/fmcnewfinal.pdf

GLOBAL GIS DATA

Global GIS data products available for purchase from General Dynamics include: the Global Maritime

Boundaries Database (GMBD) CD-ROM; the Global Maritime Ports Database (GMPD); the Global

Shoreline Database and the Global Maritime Wrecks Database. For information, access:

http://www.veridian.com/offerings/subOffering.asp?offeringID=538&historyIDs=0,536,538

PUBLICATIONS AND PROCEEDINGS

•              The Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network 2003 National Science Meeting was

held last November in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The theme was “Delivering Ecological Science to

Society: influencing and informing governance, policy, adaptation and decision-making”.

A summary of the Meeting is available at:

http://www.eman-rese.ca/eman/reports/meetings/national2003/summary.html

•               Published by the American Fisheries Society in 2004, “Geographic Information Systems in

Fisheries” introduces ways GIS can be applied to fisheries, identifies challenges associated with using

GIS in aquatic environments, reviews fisheries applications of GIS in freshwater (streams, rivers,

lakes, and reservoirs) and marine (nearshore and offshore)

environments and in aquaculture, examines GIS as a tool for fisheries decision-making, and

concludes with the future of GIS in fisheries. For ordering information, access:

http://64.224.98.53/publications/catbooks/x55041.shtml

•              “An Introduction to Coastal Zone Management - 2^nd Edition”, addresses the serious coastal

trends and pressures in the US, assesses the current policy and planning framework, and puts forth

a vision for future management and sustainable coastal planning. It can be purchased online from

several distributors, including: http://amazon.com, http://powells.com, etc.

•               “Coastal-Marine Conservation: Science and Policy” explores coastal-realm issues and

conservation tools, and linkages between conservation science and policy. Coverage includes the

issues and tools for conservation, the coastal realm as a global ecosystem, the interaction of

species’ natural history and coastal-realm environments, and ecosystem health and conservation

challenges.

Three case studies representing three regions are included. It can be purchased online from several

distributors, including:

http://blackwellpublishing.com, http://chapters.indigo.ca, http://amazon.com, etc.

•              The Proceedings of the October 2003 MEDCOAST Conference have now been issued

as a three-volume set. The topics include, among many others, Integrated Coastal Management,

Mariculture, Marine Transportation, Coastal and Marine Biology, Water Quality Management,

Coastal Engineering, Modeling, and Remote Sensing and GIS. The abstracts and ordering

information are available at: http://www.medcoast.org.tr/publications/index.html

DEADLINES

•              20 February 2004 is the deadline for submitting abstracts to “Littoral 2004”, scheduled for

19-22 September 2004 in Aberdeen, Scotland. For information, access: http://www.littoral2004.org

•              22 February 2004 is the deadline for submitting abstracts to “ECSA 37 - ERF 2004”, the

joint Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association (ECSA) and Estuarine Research Federation (ERF)

International Conference, scheduled for 20-25 June 2004 in the Ballina RSL, Northern NSW, Australia.

For information, access:

http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/rsm/ecsa37erf2004conference/

•              27 February 2004 is the deadline for submitting abstracts to the “6^thAnnual Scientific

Conference of the GEOIDE Network”, scheduled for 30 May –1 June 2004 in Gatineau, Quebec,

Canada. For information, access:

http://www.geoide.ulaval.ca/conference/en/home/home.html

•              27 February 2004 is the deadline for submitting letters of intent to the External

Peer-Reviewed Grants competition under NOAA’s Oceans and Human Health Initiative

(OHI), designed to coordinate and focus agency activities on critical areas of concern

and identify critical gaps in coverage of the connection between an oceans and human

health program scope. For information, access: http://www.ogp.noaa.gov/mpe/ohi/index.htm

•              1 March 2004 is the deadline for submitting abstracts to “Geomatics – A Cartographic

Revolution”, the annual conference of the CCA (Canadian Cartographic Association), scheduled

for 8-10 June 2004 in Lindsay, Ontario, Canada. For information, access:

http://www.geomaticsatfleming.ca/cca2004/index.htm

•              1 March 2004 is the deadline for applications to the “International Course in

Wetland Management”, scheduled for 30 August - 30 September 2004 at the Wetlands Advisory

and Training Centre (WATC) in Lelystad, The Netherlands.

For information, access: http://www.ramsar.org/watc_course_2004.htm

UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND OTHER EVENTS

•              20-21 February 2004: “11^th Annual Conference of the Fishermen and Scientists Research

Society”, Halifax, Nova Scotia. For information, access:

http://www.fsrs.ns.ca/events/ac2004.html

•              2-6 March 2004: “Species at Risk 2004: Pathways to Recovery”, Victoria, British Columbia.

For information, access: http://www.speciesatrisk2004.ca

•              14-19 March 2004: “100^th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Geographers (AAG)”,

 Philadelphia, PA. A paper session on “Marine and Coastal GIS” is being organized for the AAG

meeting, co-sponsored by the Coastal and Marine Geography and GIS specialty groups.

For information, access:

http://www.aag.org/annualmeetings/index.cfm

•              15-16 March 2004: Symposium entitled “Climate Change and Our Natural Resources:

Taking Action to Save Our Natural Places”, sponsored by the New England Governors and

Eastern Canadian Premiers, Boston, Massachusetts. For information,

email: info@newenglandgovernors.org

•              16-19 March 2004: 2004 AMRS Conference “Operational Oceanography and

Remote Sensing”, London, UK. For information, access:

http://www.waterobserver.org/event-2004-03/

•              18 March 2004: “Marine GIS Conference”, London, UK. For information,

access: http://www.metoc.co.uk/News.html or email David Green at d.r.green@abdn.ac.uk

•              31 March - 3 April 2004: “International Symposium on Quantitative Ecosystem Indicators

for Fisheries Management”, Paris, France. For information, access:

http://www.ecosystemindicators.org/

•              For a more complete list of upcoming conferences and workshops, access:

http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/conf

The ACZISC Secretariat

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you do not wish to receive the ACZISC Updates, please email the

Secretariat at leblanc@ca.inter.net and your name will be deleted from the distribution list.

This and previous Updates are available at http://www.dal.ca/aczisc/new