Eastern Canada Marine Spatial Planning Areas

Three marine spatial planning areas delineate the spatial extents for plans led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The areas cover the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Newfoundland and Labrador Shelves, and the Scotian Shelf and Bay of Fundy. These planning areas are derived from Federal Marine Bioregions defined using ecosystem-based management principles.

Use Cases

• Analyze the spatial extents of the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence (EGSL) planning area for coastal zone management.
• Map the boundaries of the Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) Shelves planning area relative to the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
• Compare the Scotian Shelf and Bay of Fundy planning area coverage with NAFO Divisions 4VWX, 5Ze, and 5Y.
• Integrate planning area geometries with Federal Marine Bioregions data to assess ecological bioregion alignment.

Strengths

• Data originates from the authoritative government agency Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
• Covers three distinct and major marine planning regions in Eastern Canada.
• Derived from a defined scientific process using ecosystem-based management principles.

Limitations

• Specific row count, column count, and data size are unknown.
• Sample data is unavailable for previewing structure and attributes.
• The dataset excludes the French EEZ for St. Pierre et Miquelon, creating a geographic gap.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Collection Method

Derived from Federal Marine Bioregions developed by a Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat process.

Freshness

Last updated March 24, 2026.

Geography

Eastern Canada, covering the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland and Labrador Shelves, and Scotian Shelf and Bay of Fundy.