Happy World Oceans Day from Reanne

Happy World Oceans Day everyone!

I’m Reanne, the newest member of the CPAWS Nova Scotia team. I’m very excited to be joining this organization and to have the opportunity to work on marine conservation, as I feel passionately about protecting Nova Scotia’s diverse marine and coastal ecosystems. Seeing as today is World Oceans Day, I’d like to share with you some of the marine work I’ll be doing, as well as a little information about myself!

One of the projects I will be working on is the protection of Fundian Channel – Browns Bank, which was announced by the federal government as an Area of Interest (AOI) for a future marine protected area in 2018.  Located on the Scotian Shelf, this stretch of ocean was selected because of the important oceanographic processes and sensitive seafloor habitats that are found here. The area contains the densest-known concentration of large gorgonian corals in the Maritimes, as well as significant concentrations of sponges. These habitats support a variety of commercial and non-commercial species, including depleted groundfish species such as Atlantic cod and wolffish. The Fundian Channel is also the largest entrance to the Gulf of Maine, hence an important migration corridor for many species, including basking sharks. It’s apparent that this important and unique region deserves recognition and protection as an MPA.

I will also be working to help better protect the Bay of Fundy. One of Canada’s most famous ocean regions, and with the largest tidal range in the world (up to 16.2m!), the Bay of Fundy is a place like no other. The unique conditions provide habitats for a wide variety of species, from invertebrates to migrating shorebirds. The salt marshes along the coast offer protection against storm surges and sea level rise, as well as acting as a carbon sink, removing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The Bay of Fundy is hugely important, for so many reasons, and I look forward to working with coastal communities here.

The unique coastline in Nova Scotia is actually what drew me to this part of the world – originally from the UK, I moved to Atlantic Canada to study marine management and ended up falling in love with the east coast. During my studies I had the opportunity to use drones to create 3D maps of the coast, that I used to assess the potential of this technology to help coastal communities adapt to climate change. I’m thrilled to continue working on marine conservation in Nova Scotia as part of the CPAWS team. It’s exciting to be helping protect our ocean here, for the biodiversity and ecosystems it contains, but also for us and the important role it plays in our lives.

Wishing everyone a great Oceans Day!

Reanne