Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA)Consultations

Documents | PNCIMA Meeting Schedule | DFO Contact

About PNCIMA

The Region

The Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA) covers an area of approximately 102,000 square kilometers. PNCIMA stretches from Canada’s northern border with Alaska south to Bute Inlet on the mainland, across to Campbell River on the east side of Vancouver Island and the Brooks Peninsula on the west side of Vancouver Island. Its western boundary is the base of the shelf slope.

The waters of the PNCIMA region are biologically diverse and contain thousands of fish, invertebrate and plant species. The undersea environment is dynamic and a source of food, jobs and recreation for thousands of Canadians.

The area currently supports diverse marine activities including: commercial and recreational fisheries, First Nations' traditional use, marine tourism, shipping and transportation and aquaculture. Alternative offshore energy projects, new commercial fisheries and shellfish aquaculture initiatives are also emerging industries in the region.

Integrated Management Planning

In 2004, the federal government identified PNCIMA as one of five large ocean management areas in which to pilot integrated oceans management (IOM) planning. Integrated management planning, a key commitment of the Oceans Act, is a collaborative way to determine how marine resources can best be developed and protected, and a commitment to coordinate planning and management of human activities that considers conservation, protection, and sustainable use of shared ocean resources and areas.

Integrated Oceans Management helps to:

• Balance socio-economic, cultural, and ecological objectives for oceans.
• Forecast and address future economic developments and needs.
• Improve coordination of new and existing management practices.
• Address conflicts between different ocean uses.
• Create greater certainty and sustainability in oceans management.
• Help account for the cumulative effects of many activities happening in marine ecosystems.
• Strengthen relationships with all partners and ocean users

The PNCIMA process will bring the area's stakeholders together to apply integrated management practices to the region. The PNCIMA initiative's purpose is to ensure a healthy, safe and prosperous ocean area by engaging all interested parties in the collaborative development and implementation of an integrated management plan for PNCIMA.

Working Together

In December 2008, a Memorandum of Understanding regarding collaborative governance for PNCIMA was signed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Coastal First Nations, and the North Coast-Skeena First Nations Stewardship Society. The Province of British Columbia and Nanwakolas Council of First Nations subsequently become parties to the MOU in the fall of 2010. The MOU confirms the commitment of all parties to integrated marine planning in the PNCIMA region to achieve the shared goals of maintaining healthy ocean ecosystems and sustaining local marine economies.

Under the collaborative governance MOU, senior executives and leaders from federal government agencies, the Province of BC, and First Nations work together in a Steering Committee that is responsible for strategic direction and executive oversight of the planning process. Technical staff from these organizations work together in a Planning Office to coordinate the planning process.

Public engagement is a key component of the PNCIMA planning initiative. The Integrated Oceans Advisory Committee (IOAC) is an advisory body with participants from each of the main marine-related sectors in the region, including: marine transportation, renewable and non-renewable energy, aquaculture, environmental non-governmental organizations, recreation, tourism, recreational and commercial fisheries, and local government. They provide advice and recommendations on elements of the integrated management plan throughout the planning process.

Sub-regional Advisory Forums offer important opportunity for local perspectives and knowledge to be integrated into the PNCIMA planning process. The forums provide broader and recurring opportunities for localized input on key PNCIMA issues and topics, and are open to all interested parties. They also help the PNCIMA Planning Office and Steering Committee report out on the progress of the PNCIMA initiative and solicit feedback, and provide an opportunity for local communities to share their perspectives, interests, and knowledge directly with the Planning Office and Steering Committee.

Planning Status

The PNCIMA planning process was formally launched at multi-stakeholder PNCIMA Forum in March 2009, which was attended by over 300 people. The Forum represented the beginning of creating an integrated management planning process for the Pacific North Coast as well as an opportunity to learn and provide input into what that process might become. The aim of the Forum was to develop a common understanding of:

• The PNCIMA region
• Integrated management planning
• The PNCIMA planning process, including the Initiative’s scope and issues of scale
• The roles and responsibilities of the key contributors to the planning process
• Stakeholder expectations of the PNCIMA planning process and outcomes

The PNCIMA planning process is now underway and important progress has been made with input from the Integrated Oceans Advisory Committee and hundreds of attendees at sub regional advisory forums throughout the PNCIMA region. A final draft integrated management plan is scheduled to be ready for submission by December 2012.

Visit pncima.org for further information, including a library of PNCIMA publications and reports.

Documents

• pncima.org 'Document Library'

PNCIMA Meetings

Date	Meeting	Location	Documents
November 23-24, 2011	IOAC	TBA
September 14-15, 2011	Integrated Oceans Advisory Committee (IOAC) Meeting #6	Crest Hotel, Prince Rupert
June 14-15, 2011	IOAC Meeting #5	Haida Gwaii, Ka'ay Centre	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 30, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Bella Coola		Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 10, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Skidegate	Skidegate Community Hall, Front Street 6-9PM	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 9, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Prince Rupert	Crest Hotel - Skeena Room, 222 1 Avenue West 6-9PM	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 7, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Kitimat	Kitimat Valley Institute, 1352 Alexander Ave. 6-9PM	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 3, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Port Hardy	Providence Place Inn, 7050 Rupert Street 6-9PM	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 2, 2011	Sub-regional Advisory Forum - Campbell River	Maritime Heritage Centre, 621 N Island Highway 6-9PM	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
February 22-23 2011	IOAC Meeting #4	Empire Landmark Hotel, Vancouver	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
November 23, 2010	IOAC Meeting #3	Port Hardy	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
September 20-21 2010	IOAC Meeting #2	Prince Rupert, Crest Hotel	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
June 28-29 2010	IOAC Meeting #1	Painters Lodge, Campbell River	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 13, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Vancouver	SFU Harbour Centre, Vancouver 1-4 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 8, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Bella Coola	Lobelco Community Hall, Bella Coola 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 8, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Shearwater	Shearwater Marine, Shearwater 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 7, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Port Hardy	Port Hardy Civic Centre 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 6, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Campbell River	Coast Discovery Inn, Campbell River 7-10 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
April 1, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Kitimat	Riverlodge Recreation Centre, Kitimat 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 31, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Prince Rupert	Highliner Plaza Hotel, Prince Rupert 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 30, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Masset	Howard Phillips Community Hall, Massett 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 29, 2010	Stakeholder Engagement Community Meeting - Skidegate	Skidegate Community Hall, Skidegate 6-9 pm	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
February 9 - 10 2010	Socio- Economic and Cultural Workshop (SECOA)	Crest Hotel, Prince Rupert	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
June 26, 2009	PNCIMA meeting with stakeholders on marine transportation	401 Burrard Vancouver
June 19, 2009	PNCIMA Forum follow-up meeting with Environmental NGOs	401 Burrard Vancouver
June 15, 2009	PNCIMA engagement meeting with Kwakwaka- -'wakw First Nations	Campbell River
May 28, 2009	PNCIMA forum follow-up meeting with regional districts	Prince Rupert
May 14, 2009	PNCIMA forum follow-up meeting with industry	401 Burrard
March 25-26, 2009	PNCIMA Forum	Richmond	Meeting Materials available at PNCIMA.org Meeting Hub
March 5, 2009	PNCIMA Preparatory Meeting	Malone's Oceanside Bistro, Port Hardy
March 4, 2009	PNCIMA Preparatory Meeting	Kitimat Valley Institute, Kitimat
March 3, 2009	PNCIMA Preparatory Meeting	Crest Hotel, Prince Rupert evening session
March 3, 2009	PNCIMA Preparatory Meeting	Howard Phillips Community Hall, Massett
March 2, 2009	PNCIMA Preparatory Meeting	Skidegate Community Hall, Skidegate

DFO Contact

Neil Davis
PNCIMA Coordinator
200-401 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC
V6C 3S4

Phone: 604-666-8437
Email: Neil.Davis@dfo-mpo.gc.ca