Establishing Marine Protected Areas

Canada is not meeting its commitments in establishing protecting and conserved marine and coastal areas

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Tabling date:: November 6, 2025
Audited entities:: Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Environment and Climate Change Canada; Parks Canada
Report type: Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development reports

Establishing Marine Protected Areas
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At a glance

Overall, we concluded that Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada, and Environment and Climate Change Canada were not on track to establish protected and conserved areas covering 25% of marine and coastal ecosystems by 2025. We also concluded that the 3 federal organizations had not developed an updated, collaborative plan to establish a network of protected and conserved marine areas by 2030 that are ecologically representative and of significance to biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services.

Oceans support a significant portion of the planet’s biodiversity, regulate climate, and produce most of the oxygen we breathe. To help safeguard these critical systems and contribute to the battle against climate change, Canada committed to conserving 25% of marine and coastal areas in Canada by 2025, and 30% by 2030. However, as of March 2025, only 15.5% of Canada’s marine and coastal areas were protected and conserved.

The 3 federal organizations have completed important steps to reach the 2030 target, such as identifying new areas of interest, undertaking site feasibility assessments, and engaging with Indigenous governments and organizations and interested parties. They also designed new approaches to protect and conserve areas with Indigenous governments and organizations to advance cooperative management, and they have formalized the requirement to consider and incorporate Indigenous Knowledge when establishing new areas.

Despite these important advances, the 3 federal organizations had not developed clear guidance to implement the Federal Marine Protected Areas Protection Standard to prohibit harmful activities such as oil and gas exploration, mining, bottom trawling, and disposal of waste, dumping of fill, and vessel discharge.

Urgent action is needed worldwide to address the biodiversity and climate crises. Given the years required to properly consult on and establish protected and conserved marine and coastal areas, the federal government must pick up the pace to meet its 2030 commitments.

Why we did this audit

Urgent action is needed worldwide to address the biodiversity and climate crises. Oceans help regulate climate and support much of the planet’s biodiversity.
The federal government has a key leadership role to play in increasing protected and conserved areas. It is important to plan and act in a timely manner to prevent further damage and destruction of marine and coastal ecosystems of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services.
Conservation efforts are not just about reaching an overall percentage in terms of the total area protected and conserved, but are also about maintaining and restoring the quality of those areas and recognizing and respecting the rights of Indigenous peoples.

Highlights of our recommendations

To meet the target to conserve 30% of marine and coastal areas by 2030, including the qualitative elements of the target, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, in collaboration with Parks Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada, should update and implement the federal collaborative framework so that Canada’s network of marine protected areas and other effective area‑based conservation measures is well protected and conserved.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada, and Environment and Climate Change Canada should develop guidance to provide greater clarity on how the Federal Marine Protected Areas Protection Standard is to be applied to Canada’s federal marine protected areas considering differing requirements across the 3 federal organizations.

Key facts and findings

This audit is part of a series of 3 reports focused on protected and conserved areas across Canada. The 2 other audits are Establishing Terrestrial Protected Areas and Federal‑Indigenous Management of Protected Areas.
Canada is home to the world’s longest coastlines, and 15% of the population lives within 10 kilometres of the coast.
To advance its marine protection and conservation targets, Canada launched marine conservation targets in 2021, a 5‑year $842.8‑million horizontal initiative to conduct conservation activities, such as establishing protected and conserved areas.
In December 2022, Canada signed on to the Kunming‑Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which commits Canada to conserving 30% of marine and coastal areas by 2030, including areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, while respecting the rights of Indigenous peoples.
We found that Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Parks Canada, and Environment and Climate Change Canada did not maximize the use of the Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database, which is critical to national as well as international reporting on marine and terrestrial protected and conserved areas.

Over the past several decades, Canada has committed to marine conservation, and important international targets have been established since 2010. These targets have increased over time due to heightening concern internationally about the continued loss of biodiversity and the threat that this poses to nature and human well‑being. The Kunming‑Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework aims to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030, building upon the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development.

Exhibit highlights

Government of Canada commitments to conserve marine and coastal areas since 2010

Government of Canada commitments to conserve marine and coastal areas since 2010
Year	Commitment	Context
2010	Conserve 10% of marine and coastal areas by 2020	Canada, as a signatory to the United Nations’ Convention on Biological Diversity, committed to this target through the Aichi Biodiversity Targets adopted in 2010. This target was incorporated in 2016 in the 2020 Biodiversity Goals and Targets for Canada.
2019	Conserve 25% of marine and coastal areas by 2025	This target was introduced in the 2019 Speech from the Throne. Federal Budget 2021 allocated nearly $1 billion over 5 years to protect the health of our oceans.
2022	Conserve at least 30% of Canada’s marine and coastal areas by 2030	In December 2022, Canada adopted the United Nations’ Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework under the Convention on Biological Diversity. The framework sets out 23 targets aiming to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030, with a vision of living in harmony with nature by 2050. This commitment to the 30% by 2030 target was incorporated in 2022 in the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy 2022 to 2026 and in 2024 in Canada’s 2030 Nature Strategy: Halting and Reversing Biodiversity Loss in Canada.

Source: Based on information from Environment and Climate Change Canada

The 3 organizations were not on track to meet the 2025 target of establishing marine and coastal protected and conserved areas

Source: Based on information from the Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2024

Fisheries and Oceans Canada had not completed all steps of the marine protected areas establishment process for most of the sites it had identified

Source: Based on information from Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Some of Parks Canada's efforts to establish national marine protected areas advanced as planned

Source: Based on information from Parks Canada

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Establishing Marine Protected Areas

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