The Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment released the 2012–2017 Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment Action Plan on December 7, in Saint John, New Brunswick.
The plan presents the goals, outcomes and activities that the council will pursue in its continuing efforts to maintain and enhance environmental quality in the Gulf of Maine and its watersheds to allow for sustainable resource use. New Brunswick Environment Minister, and 2011-12 Chair of the Gulf of Maine Council, Margaret-Ann Blaney, unveiled the plan at the New Brunswick Museum, along with Dr. Don Hudson, council member and president emeritus of Chewonki Foundation in Maine.
“Every five years, the Gulf of Maine Council renews its engagement and commitment to working together in addressing the Gulf’s most pressing issues that require a unified, regional response,” said Blaney.
“New Brunswick is proud to be a partner, and this new Action Plan will allow the council to focus on the issues that are most in need of intervention to protect the Gulf ‘s fragile ecosystems for future generations so that they too can understand and appreciate our natural environment,” she added.
“I see the great work this organization does on an annual basis, even in these times with the economic challenges” said Hudson. “I see the impact of this action planning, things actually getting done.”
Among those issues considered a priority of the council, over the next five years: are climate change adaptation; water quality protection, and habitat restoration and conservation.
Through the action plan, the council will work toward three long-range goals:
Goal 1: Restored and Conserved Habitats
Habitats in the ocean and along the coast, including the rivers that flow to the ocean, are healthy, productive, and resilient. They support rich aquatic life, vibrant coastal communities, and ocean economies.
Goals 2: Environmental and Human Health
Environmental conditions support the health of people and the ecosystems of the Gulf of Maine.
Goal 3: Sustainable Communities
People who live and work in communities around the Gulf of Maine have information needed to adapt to the changing environment.
The Action Plan contains a list of initiatives that the Council intends to pursue during the next five years. Some of the initiatives include:
- Providing Gulf of Maine Habitat Restoration Grants and technical assistance that result in restored coastal ecosystems;
- Supporting the region-wide exchange of information on observed and predicted effects of climate change on the people living in the region and its coastal and marine habitats;
- Identifying and assessing new and emerging environmental issues in the Gulf of Maine via the publication of the State of the Gulf Report series of theme papers;
- Providing municipal adaptation grants and technical assistance that result in more resilient coastal communities;
- Publishing the Gulf of Maine Times, an unbiased news source about research and management activities happening in the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy;
- Continuing to improve the Council’s long-standing Gulfwatch contaminants monitoring program and integrating it with other monitoring initiatives;
- Creating the Ecosystem Indicator Partnership Program (ESIP), which provides an online Ecosystem Indicator Reporting Tool and Ecosystem Monitoring Map, and theme-oriented indicator fact sheets, as well as delivering training workshops and disseminating information about the health of the ecosystem;
- Advancing the bi-national acquisition and use of seafloor mapping products and services for resource and management decisions.
“The Gulf of Maine is one of the world’s most productive marine ecosystems and the economic prosperity and quality of life of millions of people are tied directly and indirectly to this fragile environment,” said Hudson. “The council understands the environmental challenges that are specific to this region, as well as the measures that must be taken to ensure its protection and its sustainability. This is the Council’s fifth action plan and it will help us and our many partners to continue our collaborative work to deliver on priorities and actions that will benefit existing and future generations.”
The GOMC was established in 1989 by the governments of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts to foster cooperative actions within the Gulf of Maine watershed, which includes the Bay of Fundy.
Today, the Council is comprised of federal, state, and provincial government agencies, non-government organizations, and business interests which exchange information, engage in long-term planning, and facilitate on-the-ground initiatives and programs aimed at protecting and enhancing the Gulf of Maine, its watersheds and associated ecosystems. On an annual rotating basis, one of the five states and provinces serves as the Secretariat and coordinates the council’s work. New Brunswick has been tasked with leading the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment for 2011-2012.
The 2012–2017 Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment Action Plan is available on the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment website www.gulfofmaine.org as well as via the New Brunswick Department of the Environment website www.gnb.ca.
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