Category Archives: Admin

boats and planes!

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Human Interaction
At 0835hrs PDT a floatplane flew W to E over the south side of the Reserve under 1000 ft.

At 1035hrs PDT a small RHIB entered the east side of the Reserve near North Race at high speed. The vessel proceeded to transit the main passage to the south side of Middle Race where they approached within 30 metres of harbour seals on the Rocks. At least 25 seals took flight to the water.

At ~1100hrs PDT a vessel was spotted entering the Reserve from the east at high speed.

At ~1330hrs PDT a vessel was spotted transiting the main passage at very high speed. Communication was made with the vessel and it slowed.

At 1510hrs PDT an Oak Bay Marine Group vessel was spotted fishing within the limits of the Reserve. Pedder Bay Marina was alerted. The vessel was halted by another recreational fishermen before PBM staff could respond.

At 1515hrs PDT an OBMG vessel was spotted speeding in the waters west of Great Race. The vessel eventually departed.

At 1515hrs PDT a recreational vessel was spotted fishing near West Race. The station vessel was launched to intercept the violators and they departed shortly thereafter.

At ~1900hrs PDT a recreational vessel was spotted speeding into the eastern portion of the Reserve in the direction of the North Race-Middle Race channel. The vessel slowed before entering the channel.

Divers from Ocean Educations arrived in the afternoon to dive off the front side of the island.

There were 18 visitors to the island today.

Pleasure: 10 Eco-Tour: 5

boats and planes

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At 1230hrs PDT a vessel (13K 116013) was observed entering the Reserve under high speed from the west. Within 100 metres of Great Race, the vessel slowed, passed near Rosedale Reef, then turned around and sped back out to the west under high power.

Mid-afternoon, a vessel was spotted drifting into the NW side of the Reserve while fishing. The vessel departed after about 10 minutes.

At ~1515hrs PDT a red eco-tour zodiac (company name not visible) transited the main channel from E to W at a speed greater than 7 knots and fast enough to keep the vessel up on a plane.

At 1533hrs PDT a floatplane passed from E to W over the north side of the Reserve.

At ~1600hrs PDT a whale watching vessel approached closer than 100 metres to a California sea lion hauled out near the derrick. The vessel was actually within the kelp bed off the rocks. Upon sighting me [Adam] the vessel backed off and sped through the main channel to the west. After passing between West Race and Middle Race, the vessel throttled up well within the limits of the Reserve.

Posted by Adam

Orcas again

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Mid-morning (exact time n/r) a small aluminum vessel with 4 persons on board entered the main channel and transited W to E to the NE corner of Great Race at which point they proceeded to throttle up, maneuver around the kelp beds and out of the Reserve.
At 1350hrs PDT an aluminum vessel with 4 persons on board was spotted fishing in a line drawn directly westward from North Race. A license number was not recorded.
At 1357hrs PDT a vessel was spotted transiting the west side of the Reserve at high speed (14K 27490).
At 1357hrs PDT a fibreglass vessel (WN 0516 NH) was spotted fishing on the W side of Great Race within the limits of the RCA. This incident was reported to the DFO Fisheries Violation Reporting Hotline.
Ecotour infractionAt 1425hrs PDT a pod of orcas passed over Rosedale Reef from E to W. A whale watching boat(red/orange RHIB, name not visible)previously outside the Reserve and following the whales, approached within 100 metres of the pod and followed the whales into the Reserve. As the whales passed through the Reserve, the vessel headed south towards the green buoy but ultimately passed on the Reserve side of the buoy. This action is in violation of the PWWA guidelines stating that eco-tour vessel operators must not follow whales into the Reserve. Photos of the incident were taken.
At 1430hrs PDT, Chris, Garry, Andrew and son, two photographers and an employee from the Development Office arrived at RR for a tour/meeting.


There were 7 visitors to the island today.

 

Posted by Adam Harding

Fishing illegally

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At 0840hrs PDT a floatplane flew low from W to E over the south side of the Reserve.

At 0930hrs PDT a OBMG rental boat was spotted maneuvering carelessly near the SW side of Great Race.

At 1000hrs PDT the United States Coast Guard Cutter Swordfish entered the E side of the Reserve and approached Great Race. A launch boat with three persons on board was deployed and began to maneuver carelessly and at excessive speed along the E and SE side of Great Race and over Rosedale Reef. VHF contact with the captain of the USCG Cutter Swordfish was made and the vessel left shortly thereafter.

At 1030hrs PDT a recreational vessel was spotted fishing near North Race. The license number 13K115028 was recorded and reported to DFO. The station vessel was launched and the violators were spoken to.

At ~1400hrs PDT a vessel was observed speeding through the channel between North Race and Middle Rock.

In the late afternoon a vessel drifted in and out of the Reserve on the current while fishing. The incident was reported to DFO.

adamjuly162011Pam Birley took this photo on remote control camera 1 of Adam and an assistant pouring concrete to reinforce the base for the boat rail while the tide was out.

Race Rocks (XwaYeN) Proposed Marine Protected Area Ecosystem Overview and Assessment Report

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Correct citation for this publication: Backe, N., S. Davies, K. Conley, G. Kosmider, G. Rasmussen, H. Ibey and K. Ladell.2011. Race rocks (XwaYeN) proposed marine protected area ecosystem overview and assessment report. Can. Manuscr. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2949: ii + 30
Executive Summary
Background
Race Rocks (XwaYeN), located 17 km southwest of Victoria in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, consists of nine islets, including the large main island, Great Race. Named for its strong tidal currents and rocky reefs, the waters surrounding Race Rocks (XwaYeN) are a showcase for Pacific marine life. This marine life is the result of oceanographic conditions supplying the Race Rocks (XwaYeN) area with a generous stream of nutrients and high levels of dissolved oxygen. These factors contribute to the creation of an ecosystem of high biodiversity and biological productivity.In 1980, the province of British Columbia, under the authority of the provincial Ecological Reserves Act , established the Race Rocks Ecological Reserve. This provided protection of the terrestrial natural and cultural heritage values (nine islets) and of the ocean seabed (to the 20 fathoms/36.6 meter contour line). Ocean dumping, dredging and the extraction of non-renewable resources are not permitted within the boundaries of the Ecological Reserve. However, the Ecological Reserve cannot provide for the conservation and protection of the water column or for the living resources inhabiting the coastal waters surrounding Race Rocks (Xwa YeN) as these resources are under the jurisdiction of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). The federal government, through the authority of theOceans Act (1997), has established an Oceans Strategy, based on the principles of sustainable development, integrated management and the precautionary approach. Part II of the Oceans Act also provides authority for the development of tools nece ssary to carry out the Oceans Strategy, tools such as the establishment of Marine Protecte d Areas (MPA). This federal authority will complement the previously established protection to the area as an Ecological Reserve, by affording protection and conservation measures to the living marine resources. Under Section 35 of the Oceans Act, the Governor in Council is authorized to designate, by regulation, Marine Protected Areas (MPA) for any of the following reasons:

  • (a) the conservation and protection of commercial and non-commercial fishery resources, including marine mammals and their habitats;
  • (b) the conservation and protection of endangered or threatened species and their habitats;
  • (c) the conservation and protection of unique habitats;
  • (d) the conservation and protection of marine areas of high biodiversity or biological productivity; and
  • (e) the conservation and protection of any other marine resource or habitat as is necessary to fulfill the mandate of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

In 1998, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans announced Race Rocks (XwaYeN) as one of four pilot Marine Protected Area (MPA) initiatives on Canada’s Pacific Coast. Race Rocks (XwaYeN) meets the criteria set out in paragraphs 35(1) (a), (b) and (d) above. Establishing a MPA within the Race Rocks (XwaYeN) area will provide for a more comprehensive level of conservation and protection for the ecosystem than can be achieved by an Ecological Reserve on its own. Designating a MPA within the area encompassing the Ecological Reserve will facilitate the integration of conservation, protection and management initiatives under the respective authorities of the two governments.

physical and biological systems of Race Rocks (XwaYeN) was completed by Wright and Pringle (2001). The 2001 report provides an extensive ecological overview describing the geological, physical oceanographic and biological components of
Race Rocks (XwaYeN) and the surrounding waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca at the time. Natural history observations and some traditional knowledge were also included. The following report is a brief update to summarize new information that has been collected in the Race Rocks (XwaYeN) area since that time and describe any changes
to trends in species distributions and oceanographic conditions. This work is meant to supplement the existing ecological overview (Wright and Pringle 2001).

See the full 32 page PDF  Ecosystem overview2011

DND blasting

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–At 0945hrs PDT a recreational vessel with a man and a woman on board entered from the NE near North Rock at high speed and approached Great Race where they slowed down to transit the Reserve.
–DND has been blasting since 0900hrs this morning.
–A Pearson alumni arrived today to help with some projects over the next few days.

There was 1 visitor to the island today.