Records of marine mammal sightings (N = 5,324) collected by ASOs and submitted to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) between 1979-2024, across three DFO regions: the Arctic, Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Maritimes. Methods for initial data compilation are provided in the associated technical report "Marine mammal records collected by the at-sea observer (ASO) program in Arctic, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Maritimes regions: a summary of challenges and opportunities for future research." Cite this data as: Feyrer, L.J., Colbourne, N., Lawson, J.W., Moors-Murphy, H.B., Ferguson, S. Dataset update to Marine mammal records collected by the At-Sea Observer program in Arctic, Newfoundland and Labrador and Maritimes regions. Published: February 2025. Ocean Ecosystems Science Division, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Dartmouth, N.S.

The Gulf of St. Lawrence At-Sea Observer Program is part of the Fisheries Monitoring Policy of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) (https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/reports-rapports/regs/sff-cpd/fishery-monitoring-surveillance-des-peches-eng.htm#toc13). Its purpose is to ensure accurate verification of fishing activities at sea by an independent third party, and to provide DFO with scientific data on catches. The fishing industry and DFO depend on the proper communication of this information for fisheries management, monitoring and scientific research activities.Biological data on fish and marine invertebrates collected by the At-Sea Observer Program is one of the sources of information used by DFO to assess the status of these resources. Biological data protocols are the subject of an annual consultation with the biologists responsible for assessing each of the exploited stocks.This dataset contains the sum of weight data for species caught, by NAFO (Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization) sub-division and by year from 1999-2023, from commercial species directed fisheries for stock assessments in the Quebec region. It also includes length frequencies for species caught when required by protocol.To preserve the confidentiality of the fishing industry, data are only presented when fishing activity has been observed on a minimum of 5 vessels in a given NAFO area. The data presented are raw and should be interpreted with caution. They may contain errors such as spatial coordinates, landing weights or inaccurate or unreliable species identifications. A brief review of the taxonomy was carried out by DFO taxonomist cited as collaborator. His comments can be found in the “REMARK_IDENT” column preceded by the code “Claude_Nozere”.

Daily sea surface temperature and salinity observations have been carried out at several locations on the coast of British Columbia since the early part of the 20th century. Observations started at the Pacific Biological Station (Departure Bay) in 1914; 11 stations were added in the mid-1930s and several more in the 1960s. The number of stations reporting at any given time has varied as sampling has been discontinued at some stations and started or resumed at others.Presently termed the British Columbia Shore Station Oceanographic Program (BCSOP), there are 12 active participating stations. Most of the stations are at lighthouses staffed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, but three (Race Rocks, Amphitrite Point, and Active Pass) are sampled by contracted observers.Observations are made daily using seawater collected in a bucket lowered into the surface water at or near the daytime high tide. This sampling method was designed long ago by Dr. John P. Tully and has not been changed in the interests of a homogeneous data set. This means, for example, that if an observer starts sampling one day at 6 a.m., and continues to sample at the daytime high tide on the second day the sample will be taken at about 06:50 the next day, 07:40 the day after etc. When the daytime high-tide gets close to 6 p.m. the observer will then begin again to sample early in the morning, and the cycle continues. Since there is a day/night variation in the sea surface temperatures the daily time series will show a signal that varies with the14-day tidal cycle. This artifact does not affect the monthly sea surface temperature data.

The Global Ice-Ocean Prediction System (GIOPS) produces global sea ice and ocean analyses and 10 day forecasts daily. This product contains time-mean sea ice and ocean forecast fields interpolated to two grids. One of the grids is a 0.2° resolution regular latitude-longitude grid covering the global ocean (north of 80° S). The other grid is in north-polar stereographic projection with a 5-km spacing at the standard parallel 60° N and covers the Arctic Ocean and the neighbouring sub-polar seas. Data is available for 50 depths. The data files are in netCDF format and comply with the Climate and Forecast Conventions.

The Coastal Ice Ocean Prediction System (CIOPS) provides a 48 hour ocean and ice forecast over different domains (East, West, Salish Sea) four times a day at 1/36° resolution. A pseudo-analysis component is forced at the ocean boundaries by the Regional Ice Ocean Prediction System (RIOPS) forecasts and spectrally nudged to the RIOPS solution in the deep ocean. Fields from the pseudo-analysis are used to initialize the 00Z forecast, whilst the 06, 12 and 18Z forecasts use a restart files saved at hour 6 from the previous forecast. The atmospheric fluxes for both the pseudo-analysis and forecast components are provided by the High Resolution Deterministic Prediction System (HRDPS) blended both spatially and temporally with either the Global Deterministic Prediction System (GDPS) (for CIOPS-East) or an uncoupled component of the Global Deterministic Prediction System (GDPS) at 10km horizontal resolution (for CIOPS-West) for areas not covered by the HRDPS.

This dataset provides projected 30-year, 50-year, and 100-year return levels for harbours in British Columbia by 2050 and 2100 under an intermediate emission scenario SSP245, relative to the mean sea level over 1993-2020. The return levels are a combination of estimated present extreme sea levels and projected mean sea level rise. The present extreme sea levels are derived from hourly coastal sea levels for the period from 1993 to 2020, simulated using a high-resolution Northeast Pacific Ocean Model (NEPOM). The projected mean sea level rise is derived from the regional mean sea level rise data of the IPCC 6th Assessment Report under SSP245, adjusted for the local vertical land motion.

This dataset provides projected 30-year, 50-year, and 100-year return levels for harbours in British Columbia by 2050 and 2100 under a high emission scenario SSP585, relative to the mean sea level over 1993-2020. The return levels are a combination of estimated present extreme sea levels and projected mean sea level rise. The present extreme sea levels are derived from hourly coastal sea levels for the period from 1993 to 2020, simulated using a high-resolution Northeast Pacific Ocean Model (NEPOM). The projected mean sea level rise is derived from the regional mean sea level rise data of the IPCC 6th Assessment Report under SSP585, adjusted for the local vertical land motion.

This record contains data on bowhead whale locations reported in Harwood, L.A. and P. Norton. 1996. Aerial survey data from the southeast Beaufort Sea, Mackenzie River estuary and west. Amundsen Gulf, July 1992. Canadian Data Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences No. 964

This dataset provides projected 30-year, 50-year, and 100-year return levels for harbours in British Columbia by 2050 and 2100 under a low emission scenario SSP126, relative to the mean sea level over 1993-2020. The return levels are a combination of estimated present extreme sea levels and projected mean sea level rise. The present extreme sea levels are derived from hourly coastal sea levels for the period from 1993 to 2020, simulated using a high-resolution Northeast Pacific Ocean Model (NEPOM). The projected mean sea level rise is derived from the regional mean sea level rise data of the IPCC 6th Assessment Report under SSP126, adjusted for the local vertical land motion

Canada has the longest coastline in the world, measuring 243,790 kilometers. Many of our waterways along the coastline have to be dredged regularly to keep shipping channels and harbours open and safe for navigation; and this material is sometimes best disposed of at sea. Schedule 5 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) defines an exclusive list of materials and substances suitable for disposal at sea in Canada, which is in accordance with the London Protocol (1996). They are: dredged material, fish waste resulting from industrial fish processing operations, ships or platforms, inert and inorganic geological matter, uncontaminated organic matter of natural origin, and bulky substances. The disposal of any substance into the sea, on the seabed, in the subsoil of the seabed, or onto ice, from a ship, an aircraft, a platform or other structure is not allowed unless a permit is issued by the Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) Disposal at Sea Program. Incineration at sea, as well as importing or exporting a substance for disposal at sea is also prohibited. More information on Disposal at Sea is available at: https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/disposal-at-sea.html The Active Disposal at Sea Sites in Canadian Waters dataset provides spatial and related information of at-sea disposal sites approved for use in Canada in the last ten years. Any additional use of a disposal site must be conducted in accordance with the terms and conditions of a valid Disposal at Sea permit. The dataset may be of use in relation to Disposal at Sea permit applications. For some Disposal at Sea permit applications the data may be of use in assessing serious harm to fish under the Fisheries Act and assessing interference with navigation under the Navigation Protection Act.