Consolidated Local Health Areas (CLHAs) Boundaries. B.C. Consolidated Local Health Areas (CLHAs) are a health geography standard that partitions the province into distinct areas that support coordination of specialized care between Health Authorities and Primary Care. The province is divided into five Health Authorities, which are subdivided into 41 Consolidated Local Health Areas (CLHAs), which are subdivided into 231 Community Health Service Areas (CHSAs). CLHAs encompass all of B.C., so the classification is exhaustive of all the land area in the province.

Distribution of clam beds in coastal Beds in British Columbia showing relative abundance (RA) and aboriginal, biological, commercial and recreational relative importance (RI) and overall RI. RI is based on project region and not on the province as a whole. and productivity. Other attributes include season dates, productivity and species. CRIMS is a legacy dataset of BC coastal resource data that was acquired in a systematic and synoptic manner from 1979 and was intermittently updated throughout the years. Resource information was collected in nine study areas using a peer-reviewed provincial Resource Information Standards Committee consisting of DFO Fishery Officers, First Nations, and other subject matter experts. There are currently no plans to update this legacy data.

Salmon have a complex hierarchical population structure extending from groups of salmon at individual spawning sites all the way up to taxonomic species. These independently functioning aggregates are defined as Conservation Units (CUs) in the Wild Salmon Policy. A stock management unit (SMU) is a group of one or more CUs that are managed together with the objective of achieving a joint status.There are 69 SMUs containing 468 CUs. In 2022, eight SMUs units did not have enough information to provide an assessment. Sixty-one units were assigned a forecast. There are ongoing requests to represent salmon information for these areas. Salmon are assessed and managed at different levels for different needs. The layers in this dataset include administrative areas, stock management units, and conservation units.The data included is a shapefile containing a single feature class layer represented in point and polygon form, as well as a csv table (attributes) to present Stock Management Unit information in a simple, visual way.

The annual summer scallop surveys on the principal grounds in the Bay of Fundy follow stratified-random designs. The gear comprises a ‘Digby scallop drag’ with four ‘buckets’, each of 760 mm inside width, their bags being made of 74 mm steel-wire rings linked by rubber washers. A comparative data set of three scallop grounds (Digby, Lurcher Shoal and Grand Manan) was produced comprised of 190 stations sampled in 1997 and 213 from 2007–08. Presence/absence of a common suite of 68 benthic invertebrate taxa were recorded: 43 individual species, 20 additional genera and five higher taxa, all drawn from nine phyla. Each taxon was coded for each of seven biological traits (each with associated modalities), selected for their assumed relevance to environmental drivers. A score between 0 and 3 was assigned based on the literature for the taxon’s affinity to each modality, using ‘fuzzy coding’. Non-zero scores were assigned to as many modalities as required to represent the traits of the taxon’s adult stage. The resulting taxa x traits matrix, of 68 taxa by 27 modalities, is provided here along with the metadata for each station sampled. In addition, fourteen environmental variables, deemed relevant to benthic epifauna and representing both seabed sediments and the water column, were quantified for each survey station. Seabed depth, mean grain size, mean significant wave height, mean seabed shear stress, root mean square tidal current speed 1 m above the seabed and combined averaged wave-current shear velocity were each extracted from a sediment transport model for the Bay of Fundy prepared by Li et al. (2015). Mean values for current velocities, salinity and temperature for both surface and bottom layers, plus maximum mixed layer depth and bottom shear were each drawn from the Bedford Institute of Oceanography North Atlantic Model (BNAM: Wang et al., 2018). BNAM values averaged across 1990–2015 were used when examining faunal differences among survey areas, but explorations of temporal change used annual values for 1997 and 2007 individually. The variable nomenclature in the attached spreadsheet follows those of Li et al. (2015) and Wang et al. (2018). Results of the spatial and temporal analyses of these data are found in Staniforth et al. (2023). The values for each of the environmental variables are provided in the spreadsheet below. Their interpolated surfaces are also provided.Cite this data as: MacDonald, Barry; Staniforth, Calisa; Lirette, Camille; Murillo, Francisco; Kenchington, Ellen; Kenchington, Trevor (2023). Benthic Megafaunal Assemblages on Scallop Fishing Grounds in the Bay of Fundy (1997 and 2007). Published May 2024. Ocean Ecosystems Science Division, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Dartmouth, N.S. https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/935836da-a565-4f1e-806e-d354d8db252c

Modeled data showing the likely distribution of Northern fur seals. CRIMS is a legacy dataset of BC coastal resource data that was acquired in a systematic and synoptic manner from 1979 and was intermittently updated throughout the years. Resource information was collected in nine study areas using a peer-reviewed provincial Resource Information Standards Committee consisting of DFO Fishery Officers, First Nations, and other subject matter experts. There are currently no plans to update this legacy data.

Current communities partnering in a mobile business licence program with neighboring communities. To view the the Mobile Business Licence partnerships in the BC Economic atlas, [click here](https://maps.gov.bc.ca/ess/hm/bcea/?catalogLayers=6081,6120,6082¢er=-13000000,6450000,102100&legendFirst).

A Conservation Unit (CU) is a group of wild Pacific salmon sufficiently isolated from other groups that, if extirpated, is very unlikely to recolonize naturally within an acceptable timeframe, such as a human lifetime or a specified number of salmon generations. Holtby and Ciruna (2007) provided a framework for aggregating the five species of salmon (genus Oncorhynchus) found on Canada’s Pacific coast into species-specific CUs based on three primary characteristics: ecotypology, life history and genetics. The first stage in the description of the Conservation Units is based solely on ecology. The ecotypologies used in this framework include a combined characterization of both freshwater and near-shore marine environments, and is termed “joint adaptive zone”. The second stage of the description involves the use of life history, molecular genetics, and further ecological characterizations to group and partition the first stage units into the final Conservation Units. The result is CUs that are described through the joint application of all three axes. It is important to note that CUs are distinct from other aggregates of Pacific salmon, such as designatable units (DUs) under the Species at Risk Act or management units (MUs).CU Counting Sites: Salmon spawner enumeration data in the Pacific Region is stored and managed in the New Salmon Escapement Database (NuSEDS). The term “escapement” is used to refer to the group of mature salmon that have ‘escaped’ from various sources of exploitation, and returned to freshwater to spawn and reproduce. This data is assigned to a “Counting Site”, which may be a complete watercourse with a marine terminus, a tributary to a larger watercourse, or a defined reach within a watercourse that may or may not encompass the entire population but represents an index of the abundance of that population. CU Status:CUs form the basic unit for assessment under Canada’s Policy for the Conservation of Wild Salmon Policy (WSP) (DFO 2005). The biological status of a CU is evaluated using a number of metrics (Holt et al. 2009; Holt 2009), which indicate a WSP status zone: Red (poor status), Amber (marginal status), or Green (healthy status). A final step then incorporates all metric and status-related information into a final integrated status for each CU, along with expert commentary to support the final status determination (e.g., DFO 2012; DFO 2016). This information is used as inputs to fisheries management processes to help prioritize assessment activities and management actions.Note: CU boundaries were reviewed in 2020-2021 and have been updated from the BC Freshwater Atlas 1:50,000 scale to the BC Freshwater Atlas 1:20,000 scale. The CU boundaries were last updated in March 2023. Please be aware that CUs may be reviewed and are subject to change without notice.Please refer to Conservation Unit Review Requests-Form and Summary for a list of CU review requests that are ongoing or have been finalized.

Modeled data showing the likely distribution of steller sealions. CRIMS is a legacy dataset of BC coastal resource data that was acquired in a systematic and synoptic manner from 1979 and was intermittently updated throughout the years. Resource information was collected in nine study areas using a peer-reviewed provincial Resource Information Standards Committee consisting of DFO Fishery Officers, First Nations, and other subject matter experts. There are currently no plans to update this legacy data.

This dataset represents meat weight and shell height data of commercial size Sea Scallop (Placopecten magellanicus; ≥ 80 mm shell height) from 2011-2023 from the Bay of Fundy Inshore Scallop Survey collected from June to mid-August. Wet meat weights were recorded to a tenth of a gram and shell heights are measured in millimeters. Meat weights and shell heights are sampled from a subset of scallops caught on survey and this detailed sampling is conducted from approximately half of the tows conducted. Each row in the dataset represents an individual scallop and contains information such as tow number, tow date, cruise name, geographical coordinates (decimal degrees, WGS 84) and the Scallop Production Area in which the tow took place. Survey protocols are documented in Glass (2017). This dataset contains tow data from a comparative survey conducted in 2012 (Smith et al., 2013). Further, these data correspond to the publication of Hebert et al. (2025).ReferencesGlass, A. 2017. Maritimes Region Inshore Scallop Assessment Survey: Detailed Technical Description. Can. Tech. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 3231: v + 32 p.Hebert, N, Sameoto, J.A., Keith, D.M., Murphy, O.A., Brown, C.J., Flemming, J. 2025. Interannual variability in the length–weight relationship can disrupt the abundance–biomass correlation of sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus). ICES. J. Mar. Sci. Smith, S.J., Glass, A., Sameoto. J., Hubley, B., Reeves, A., and Nasmith, L. 2013. Comparative survey between Digby and Miracle drag gear for scallop surveys in the Bay of Fundy. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. 2012/161. iv + 20 p.Cite this data as: Sameoto, J.A. Data of: Bay of Fundy Sea Scallop Meat Weight and Shell Height Data 2011 to 2023. Published: December 2025. Population Ecology Science Division, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Dartmouth, N.S. https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/65d32794-2d81-4682-b0ea-8d8bbe907a58

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to key cetacean species in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA). This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are relevant based upon their high ranking in one or more of three criteria (Uniqueness, Aggregation and Fitness Consequences). The distribution of IAs within ecoregions is used in the designation of EBSAs.Canada’s Oceans Act provides the legislative framework for an integrated ecosystem approach to management in Canadian oceans, particularly in areas considered ecologically or biologically significant. DFO has developed general guidance for the identification of ecologically or biologically significant areas. The criteria for defining such areas include uniqueness, aggregation, fitness consequences, resilience, and naturalness. This science advisory process identifies proposed EBSAs in Canadian Pacific marine waters, specifically in the Strait of Georgia (SOG), along the west coast of Vancouver Island (WCVI, southern shelf ecoregion), and in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA, northern shelf ecoregion).Initial assessment of IAs in PNCIMA was carried out in September 2004 to March 2005 with spatial data collection coordinated by Cathryn Clarke. Subsequent efforts in WCVI and SOG were conducted in 2009, and may have used different scientific advisors, temporal extents, data, and assessment methods. WCVI and SOG IA assessment in some cases revisits data collected for PNCIMA, but should be treated as a separate effort.Other datasets in this series detail IAs for birds, coral and sponges, fish, geographic features, invertebrates, and other vertebrates.Though data collection is considered complete, the emergence of significant new data may merit revisiting of IAs on a case by case basis.