Canada designates new national marine conservation area

On Aug. 10, Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, along with the President of the Qikiqtani Inuit Association, P.J. Akeeagok, and Nunavut’s Environment Minister, Joe Savikataaq, announced the boundaries for a new national marine conservation area in Lancaster Sound. The new area will more than double the amount of marine habitat protected across the country — increasing the total area by more than 68,000 square miles of ocean.

Management decisions for the new conservation area will be developed based on Inuit traditional knowledge — there are five Inuit communities in the area who have advocated for protection of this zone since the 1960s. The national marine conservation area in Lancaster Sound will help to protect migration routes and nurseries for sea birds, and species like narwhals (Monodon monoceros) and walruses (Odobenus rosmarus).

Read more at CBC News.