1 ICES CM 2008/J:18 The Gulf of St. Lawrence Marine Ecosystem: An Overview of its Structure and Dynamics, Human Pressures, and Governance Approaches Michel Gilbert Fisheries and Oceans Canada Maurice Lamontagne Institute 850, Route de la Mer Mont-Joli, Quebec Canada G5H 3Z4 Tel.: (418) 775-0604 Fax: (418) 775-0546 E-mail:
[email protected] Réjean Dufour Fisheries and Oceans Canada Maurice Lamontagne Institute 850, Route de la Mer Mont-Joli, Quebec Canada G5H 3Z4 Tel.: (418) 775-0623 Fax: (418) 775-0740 E-mail:
[email protected] The Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence (EGSL) represents one of the largest and most productive estuarine/marine ecosystems in Canada and in the world. However, the EGSL ecosystem is affected by a wide variety of human activities that pose significant threats to its integrity and the sustainable use of its resources. These include fisheries, navigation, mariculture activities, coastal development, recreational use (including marine mammal observation), climate change, and several land–based activities that occur along the EGSL shores and in coastal and upstream rivers and tributaries, including industrial and municipal activities, agriculture, and river damming (for water level control and hydropower). In 2005, the Government of Canada initiated the Oceans Action Plan (OAP) in order to implement an ecosystem-based management approach for five Large Ocean Management Areas (LOMAs), including the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence. This presentation provides an overview of the EGSL ecosystem structure and functioning, as well as its human pressures, through a summary of the scientific tools that were developed within this initiative.