Resources for and about the Gulf of Maine : The Gulf of Maine Times: Vol. 5 No. 4

A Nova Scotia Voluntary Planning task force will release its final report on non-resident land ownership in the province by the end of the year. The task force held 17 community meetings throughout the province last spring as part of its mandate to examine
non-resident land ownership and received written submissions from individuals. The scope of the project concerns mostly coastal and waterfront property. Only about five percent of coastal lands are protected for conservation or public access. For information, including a background paper and a series of maps and statistics to illustrate non-resident land ownership in Nova Scotia, access www.gov.ns.ca/vp/nonres/index.htm.

Aquaculture online

The Bay-Aquaculture Edition, is a Web site and online newsletter that provides information of interest to the aquaculture industry in the Bay of Fundy and northern Gulf of Maine. It is delivered free by fax in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and delivered every Monday by e-mail. Updates are made throughout the week and can be viewed by visiting, www.bayoffundy.ca/Aquaculture.

Subscribe by e-mail to cguide@nbnet.nb.ca or fax to (506) 529-8481.

Online newsletter on fisheries research

The Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance (NAMA) in Saco, Maine, with support from the Northeast Consortium, publishes a monthly e-mail update called Collaborations, as a service to individuals and groups interested in the future of cooperative fisheries research. To receive the newsletter visit the NAMA Web site at www.namanet.org. A recent issue highlights the need to provide critical information for the emerging issues of marine protected areas and ecosystem-based management. It includes dozens of links concerning MPAs.

Marine affairs e-newsletter

The Conservation Law Foundation, based in Boston, has released the first issue of NEON: New England's Ocean News. The purpose of the newsletter is to inform the public about marine affairs and the various developments that affect the marine environment in New England. Articles in the 1st edition include fisheries management, the groundfish fishery and scallop fishery, and scientific consensus on marine reserves. NEON is available at www.clf.org/NEON/.

North America shorebird estimates

Estimates of Shorebird Populations in North America, by R.I.G. Morrison, et. al, summarizes the sizes of populations of 53 species of Neararctic shorebirds occurring in North America, plus four species that breed occasionally. Occasional Paper, no. 104, by the Canadian Wildlife Service, 64 pages, 2001. For hard copy requests write to: Publications, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0H3 Tel: (819) 997-1095, Fax: (819) 997-2756. For copy requests within in the United States contact WHSRN at Manomet: Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, P.O. Box 1770, 81 Stage Point Road, Manomet, MA 02345; Tel: (508) 224-6521; Fax: (508) 224-9220. The paper can also be downloaded from www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/pub/ops/op104_e.html.

MPAs in Canada

Working Together for Marine Protected Areas describes the programs of the federal departments in Canada mandated with responsibilities for establishing and managing a range of marine protected areas - Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment Canada and Canadian Heritage - and how they fit together into a complementary and coordinated federal approach. The paper is available at http://www.oceansconservation.com/newenglish/library/wtogether/wtogeth.htm.

Maps of the Gulf of Maine available

Undersea Landscapes of the Gulf of Maine is an award-winning map and poster that focuses on the landscapes, geology and biology of the Gulf of Maine. Robert Steneck of the University of Maine School of Marine Sciences and Joseph Kelley of the Maine Geological Survey developed the poster’s concept and text. Paul Dest, formerly of the Maine Coastal Program/State Planning Office coordinated the project. An 18” X 24” three-color map of the Gulf of Maine watershed (featured on page 12 of the Gulf of Maine Times) is also available. For copies of the maps, please call Andy Cameron, Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, (902) 424-0406; Mary Power, New Hampshire Coastal Program, (603) 431-9366; Lorraine Lessard, Maine Coastal Program/State Planning Office, (207) 287-1486; or the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management’s Information Line, (617) 626-1212.

Environmental indicators’ site

The World Bank has launched a Web site with interactive maps that illustrate new international estimates of pollution damage, natural resource degradation, genuine savings, pressure on water resources, threats to biodiversity and World Bank project responses. A special section deals with the coastal and marine environment. The Web site is located at http://www.worldbank.org/nipr/Atrium/mapping.html.