Portobello Creek National Wildlife Area Management Plan: document information
Document information
Acknowledgements:
This management plan was written by Colin M. MacKinnon of the Canadian Wildlife Service of Environment and Climate Change Canada. Thanks to Canadian Wildlife Service employees who were involved in the development or review of the document: Kevin Davidson, Al Hanson and Andrew Kennedy.
Copies of this plan are available at the following addresses:
Environment and Climate Change CanadaPublic Inquiries Centre
7th Floor, Fontaine Building
200 Sacré-Coeur Boulevard
Gatineau QC K1A 0H3
Telephone: 819-997-2800
Toll Free: 1-800-668-6767 (in Canada only)
Email: ec.enviroinfo.ec@canada.ca Environment and Climate Change Canada
Canadian Wildlife Service
Atlantic Region
17 Waterfowl Lane
Sackville NB E4L 1G6
Environment and Climate Change Canada Protected Areas Website
How to cite this document:
Environment and Climate Change Canada. 2016. Portobello National Wildlife Area (NWA) Management Plan. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service, Atlantic Region, [50 pp.]
Unless otherwise specified, you may not reproduce materials in this publication, in whole or in part, for the purposes of commercial redistribution without prior written permission from Environment and Climate Change Canada's copyright administrator. To obtain permission to reproduce Government of Canada materials for commercial purposes, apply for Crown Copyright Clearance by contacting:
Environment and Climate Change CanadaPublic Inquiries Centre
7th Floor, Fontaine Building
200 Sacré-Coeur Boulevard
Gatineau QC K1A 0H3
Telephone: 819-997-2800
Toll Free: 1-800-668-6767 (in Canada only)
Email: ec.enviroinfo.ec@canada.ca
About Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Protected Areas and management plans
What are environment and climate change Canada protected areas?
Environment and Climate Change Canada establishes marine and terrestrial National Wildlife Areas for the purposes of conservation, research and interpretation. National Wildlife Areas are established to protect migratory birds, species at risk, and other wildlife and their habitats. National Wildlife Areas are established under the authority of the Canada Wildlife Act and are, first and foremost, places for wildlife. Migratory Bird Sanctuaries are established under the authority of the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994 and provide a refuge for migratory birds in the marine and terrestrial environment.
What is the size of the environment and climate change Canada protected areas network?
The current Protected Areas Network consists of 54 National Wildlife Areas and 92 Migratory Bird Sanctuaries comprising close to 12 million hectares across Canada.
What is a management plan?
A management plan provides the framework in which management decisions are made. They are intended to be used by Environment and Climate Change Canada staff to guide decision making, notably with respect to permitting. Management is undertaken in order to maintain the ecological integrity of the protected area and to maintain the attributes for which the protected area was established. Environment and Climate Change Canada prepares a management plan for each protected area in consultation with First Nations, the public and other stakeholders.
A management plan specifies activities that are allowed and identifies other activities that may be undertaken under the authority of a permit. It may also describe the necessary improvements needed in the habitat, and specify where and when these improvements should be made. A management plan identifies Aboriginal rights and allowable practices specified under land claims agreements. Further, measures carried out for the conservation of wildlife must not be inconsistent with any law respecting wildlife in the province in which the protected area is situated.
What is protected area management?
Management includes monitoring wildlife, maintaining and improving wildlife habitat, periodic inspections of facilities, enforcement of regulations, as well as the maintenance of facilities and infrastructure. Research is also an important activity in protected areas; hence, Environment and Climate Change Canada staff carries out or coordinates research in some sites.
The series
All of the National Wildlife Areas are to have a management plan. All of these management plans will be initially reviewed 5 years after the approval of the first plan, and every 10 years thereafter.
To learn more
To learn more about Environment and Climate Change Canada’s protected areas, please visit our website at Protected Areas or contact the Canadian Wildlife Service in Ottawa.
Portobello Creek National Wildlife Area
Portobello Creek National Wildlife Area (NWA) is situated within the lower Saint John River floodplain, 20 km east of Fredericton and 8 km northeast of Oromocto, New Brunswick. This NWA is currently 2084 ha, but once land acquisition is completed, the NWA will encompass 4000 ha.
Portobello Creek NWA is part of the floodplain complex of the lower Saint John River. The wetlands of the lower Saint John River floodplain have been identified as one of the most productive habitats for wildlife in New Brunswick. Each spring following ice-out on the Saint John River, the rising waters flood the lowlands along the river. The spring freshet leaves behind a flush of nutrients on the floodplain that contributes to the highly productive character of the Saint John River wetlands (Choate 1973; Roberts 1992; Hanson et al. 1998; Conner and Gabor 2006). This floodplain complex is important not only for its significant habitat value, but also in reducing flooding events and minimizing related property damage.
Major habitat types within the NWA include mixed woods, shrub swamp, wooded swale, open marsh and open water (Whitman 1968). The area contains pockets of Eastern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) and numerous large Red Oak (Quercus rubra) bordering portions of the Portobello Creek. The entire wetland complex is used by waterfowl during spring and fall migration. Eight species of ducks commonly produce broods in the area during the summer months. This wetland complex and the adjacent Grand Lake Meadows Protected Natural Area, administered by the Province of New Brunswick, support several rare species, including a population of Yellow Rail (Coturnicops noveboracensis) at Grand Lake Meadows (Kehoe et al. 2000).
Portobello Creek remains largely an untouched gem. The floodplain remains intact despite the considerable forestry and agricultural activity along its borders. While many comparable areas have been dyked and channelized to control flood water, the diversity of wildlife and unaltered habitats of Portobello Creek NWA provide a glimpse of what the floodplain was in earlier times.
For greater certainty, nothing in this management plan shall be construed so as to abrogate or derogate from the protection provided for existing Aboriginal or treaty rights of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada by the recognition and affirmation of those rights in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 .