This is clear given the historically uneven concentration of economic benefits from the oil industry and its chronic - and sometimes catastrophic - pollution of local ecosystems. Under the simplest logic, the production of offshore oil and gas - non-renewable resources - cannot be part of a blue economy approach defined by equity and sustainability. The example of offshore oil and gas is a peculiar yet important aspect of Canada’s future blue economy.
Because of their connectivity and role in human relationships, oceans are an important arena where these commitments play out. Adopting a blue economy approach would change that by first focusing on these basic enabling governance conditions.įor Canada to achieve a blue economy, it would need to develop policy strategies that address complex issues, including Indigenous fishing, ocean conservation, sustainable use, climate change and offshore oil and gas production.
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While working within environmental guidelines, these companies can decide how to run their businesses in ways that fit their cultural as well as business goals.īut our research shows nations around the world lack the capacity to enable equitable ocean industries and are still struggling to address corruption, human rights and basic infrastructure to build their ocean development plans. In the North, Atlantic and Pacific regions, these programs subsidize and support business capacity and technology for Indigenous-owned companies to invest in fisheries and aquaculture. There are some good examples in Canada of how this can work well, including the federal government’s Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiatives. Past ocean development has illustrated that ensuring benefits to frontline communities and marginalized populations, and avoiding harm to these people, will not happen on its own. These guiding principles aim to recognize and include all individuals, prioritize the fair sharing of benefits and burdens and protect vulnerable peoples from environmental and economic impacts, natural or human-caused.Īlthough governments and industry are investing in new technology and research to track habitat and climate, and are aiming for environmental sustainability, these are now hardly ground-breaking commitments. New technologies, such as automated and deep-sea vessels, as well as ecological and social research will also be needed, especially for emerging sectors like wave and tidal energy or blue carbon - the management of seagrasses, mangroves, marshes and kelp ecosystems for carbon offsetting.īut what sets a blue economy apart from business as usual is its focus on social equity and environmental justice. More deeply, Canada will have to decide which people and places will benefit from new ocean investment, and who will be impacted.įor industries like fisheries, aquaculture, tourism or shipping, achieving blue economies will mean deep transformations to address unsustainable practices, such as pollution or overfishing. At stake are flashpoint issues like oil and gas expansion, aquaculture and the protection of species at risk. Now Canada is bringing the blue economy to its own waters.Īs researchers at the intersection of ocean resources, justice and policy, we believe that a Canadian blue economy can have huge benefits for all - if done well. Developing a blue economy means establishing ocean spaces and industries that are socially equitable, environmentally sustainable and economically profitable.Ĭanada has been a key player in these efforts, including by supporting the first global conference on a blue economy, held in Nairobi in 2018 with over 18,000 participants. The term blue economy was first championed by small-island developing countries, including Fiji, Bahamas and Palau, to bring more local benefits from ocean industries. The transformation of Canada’s ocean economies will be felt throughout the country and will set an example for nations around the world.īut what is a blue economy? And what makes it different from business as usual?
The words “blue economy” will soon shape the future of Canada’s oceans, from the fiords and straits of British Columbia to the rugged coastlines of the Atlantic to the vast seascapes of the Arctic.