Location: North of Sable Island Bank
Area: Approx. 3,700 km2
Description: Includes Middle Bank and the channels, holes, and mounds to the north of the bank
Key Ecological Features:
Area: Approx. 3,700 km2
Description: Includes Middle Bank and the channels, holes, and mounds to the north of the bank
Key Ecological Features:
- Area of high fish species diversity
- Includes many different habitats – sandy banks, small channels, deep holes, mounds
- The diverse habitat types found in this candidate AOI support a variety of marine life.
- One of the most important spawning and nursery area for Atlantic cod on the Eastern Scotian Shelf. Overall abundance of this once dominant predator has sharply declined since the mid-1980s and remains extremely low despite a 15-year moratorium on directed fishing.
- Significant habitat for at-risk species (winter skate and Atlantic cod). Protecting Middle Bank may contribute to the recovery of these species.
- Important habitat for haddock, yellowtail flounder, shrimp, and sea cucumber
- Activity by the oil and gas industry has been low in this candidate AOI, with little or no exploration in the past 20 years. However, the area is adjacent to the current gas pipeline from the Sable Offshore Energy Project and the planned pipeline from the future Deep Panuke Offshore Gas Development Project.
- The gravel bottom area on northern Middle Bank has been identified as having some potential for future aggregate mining, but this type of activity is not currently authorized in Canada’s offshore.