Wanted: Marine Spatial Planner in Inuvik. Loves a challenge. And the cold.

The more I know about the Beaufort Sea, the more there is to know. And that is the conundrum our marine spatial planner will be confronted with. There is a lot of information, though not always presented in a way that helps local people, governments or non-profits make wise decisions.  Click here to see what Indian and Native Affairs Canada (INAC) uses to help guide decision-making about oil and gas leases in the Beaufort.

Copyright Sue Herbert/WWF-Canada
While useful, it’s not enough. The fact that INAC continues to award new exploration leases in the Beaufort while we are awaiting the results of the National Energy Board’s review of  offshore drilling  in the Beaufort is a whole other issue – though it serves to illustrate why WWF needs to have a strong presence here.
And of course there are significant gaps in information, particularly in understanding data of a trans-boundary nature. This is important because essentially Alaska and the northern Canadian territories share one large ecosystem. Some work has been done. Check out this wonderful animation of bowhead whale migrations completed after years of research involving Alaskan and Inuvialuit communities here in the NWT. So our new person will gather up what we know to date, seek out new, untapped information, point out gaps in mapping and research and find some way to illustrate it all for decision-making in support of the work of the Beaufort Sea Partnership. And that is only the beginning! Informed decision-making processes will need to follow, and we will be here to help that process too.
All of this is pretty exciting, but I have a couple of practical things to attend to now. It’s cold and the snow is blowing about; visibility is pretty poor. The Dempster Highway is closed at Eagle Plains. I am headed out to stock up on fresh veggies and wine …just in case.