Conserving priority habitats
Target 6.1: Terrestrial Ecosystems and Habitat – Non-park protected habitat: habitat target to support conservation of priority migratory birds and species at risk will be set by 2015.
As of 2011, approximately 8 million hectares of habitat for waterfowl had been secured in Canada through the North American Waterfowl Management Plan. The area secured has been increasing since 1990, with 70% of the increase occurring in the last five years.
As of 2011–2012, 168 878 hectares of habitat had been secured in Canada through the Habitat Stewardship Program for species at risk, benefiting up to 417 species assessed as "at risk" by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada.
The government continues to work in collaboration with other jurisdictions to provide and protect habitat. Since 2007, the government has partnered with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, through the Natural Areas Conservation Program, to acquire privately held, ecologically sensitive lands through donation, purchase or stewardship agreements. These agreements supplement Canada's protected areas. In 2011, Canada and Nature Conservancy of Canada acquired more than 300 ha of land in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia to form a land bridge for terrestrial wildlife, including Mainland Moose and Canada Lynx, to move between habitats. As of December 2011, the Natural Areas Conservation Program has protected 327 757 ha of habitat.
In addition, in 2011, the Government of Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources teamed up to protect habitat of the Piping Plover, a shorebird that is listed as endangered under SARA. In 2012, other partnership projects included protecting fragile habitats on Manitoulin Island and on the Acadian Peninsula in New Brunswick.
Internationally, Canada collaborated with the U.S. and Mexico to revise the North America Waterfowl Management Plan, which works to secure wetland and upland habitat for waterfowl birds. Canada also participated in the successful October 2010 Party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, where Canada and other countries agreed to a 10-year global Strategic Plan for Biodiversity. It includes a new global target for 2020 to conserve at least 17% of terrestrial areas and inland waters, and 10% of marine areas across the globe, through a combination of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures.
For additional information on the implementation strategies that support this target, please consult the following websites: Environment Canada and Finance Canada.
Progress Towards Target 6.1: Habitat conserved through the North American Waterfowl Management Plan
In Canada, 45 species of waterfowl rely on healthy wetlands for living and for raising their young. In the mid-1980s, North American waterfowl populations had plummeted to record lows, largely because of human activities that have resulted in the loss and/or degradation of wetlands. In response, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) secures habitat for waterfowl, coordinated by the North American Wetlands Conservation Council (Canada).
As of 2011, approximately 8 million ha of habitat for waterfowl had been secured in Canada through the NAWMP. As illustrated in Figure 4.6, the area secured has been increasing since 1990, with 70% of the increase occurring in the last five years. The large increase in 2008 is the result of the securing of habitat in the Western Boreal Forest region through Crown designation.
For the most up-to-date information on this indicator, please visit CESI.
Figure 4.6: Cumulative waterfowl habitat secured in Canada by North American Waterfowl Management Plan partners, 1990 to 2011
Progress Towards Target 6.1: Habitat conserved through the habitat stewardship program
As of 2011–2012, 168 878 ha of habitat had been secured in Canada through the Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) for Species at Risk, benefiting up to 417 species assessed as "at risk" by COSEWIC.
As indicated in Figure 4.7, the area secured has increased steadily since the program's inception in 2000. Canada launched the HSP in recognition of the importance of natural habitat to the survival and recovery of species. The HSP provides funding for stewardship activities that secure habitats for species assessed as nationally at risk (endangered, threatened or of special concern) and priority is given to projects that target species listed under SARA.
For the most up-to-date information on this indicator, please visit CESI.
Figure 4.7: Cumulative species at risk habitat secured in Canada by Habitat Stewardship Program-funded projects, 2000 to 2011
As well, the HSP has established more than 200 partnerships with successful recipients and, overall, community involvement and partnerships are the strengths of this program. In 2011–2012, the HSP for Species at Risk allocated $11.5 million for 208 projects.
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