REPORT 2018 39
POLAR KNOWLEDGE Aqhaliat
REPORT 2018
38
ARCTIC MARINE ECOLOGY BENCHMARKING PROGRAM:
Monitoring biodiversity using scuba
few scuba diving surveys of nearshore marine ora and
fauna in the Canadian Arcc, which faces increasing risk
due to climate change, invasive species, and increased
human acvity. This project addresses this signicant gap
by establishing baseline biodiversity data and iniang
long-term nearshore monitoring near Cambridge Bay,
Nunavut.
Methods
Scuba diving
Dives were completed by Ocean Wise divers holding a
Scienc Diver Level II rang, as dened by the Canadian
Associaon for Underwater Science (caus.ca) Standard
of Pracce for Scienc Diving, and were planned using
DCIEM Air Diving Tables as no-decompression dives
using compressed air. No more than two dives per day
per diver were undertaken. Dives met the requirements
of the Nunavut Occupaonal Health and Safety
Regulaons: Part 20, Diving Operaons. The project
included a combinaon of shore- and boat-based dives.
Suggested citation:
Schultz, J., Heywood, J., Gibbs, D., Borden, L., Kent, D., Neale, M., Kulcsar, C., Banwait, R., and Trethewey, L. 2018. Arctic Marine ecology benchmarking
program: Monitoring biodiversity using scuba. Polar Knowledge: Aqhaliat 2018, Polar Knowledge Canada, p. 39–45. DOI: 10.35298/pkc.2018.05
Abstract
Building on the catalogue of data gathered during the
2015 and 2016 Nearshore Ecological Surveys, the 2017
Arcc Marine Ecology Benchmarking Program (AMEBP)
collected biodiversity and abundance data on marine
algae, invertebrates, and sh species using scuba diving
at selected sites near Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, in the
summer of 2017. The project served as a pilot study to
assess scuba diving survey modes (transect vs. taxon)
and make recommendaons for future research and
monitoring eorts. This paper is a summary of the 2017
Arcc Marine Ecology Benchmarking Program Final
Report (available on request).
Introduction
Reliable baseline data and ongoing monitoring are
essenal for developing a full understanding of the
changes underway in Canada’s Arcc, thereby enabling
the development of eecve management strategies
and conservaon plans. The nearshore ecosystem is a key
part of the larger marine ecosystem, because it is where
most direct human impact, such as boang, hunng, and
harvesng, takes place. However, there have been very
Jessica Schultz
1
, Jeremy Heywood
1 *
, Donna Gibbs
1
, Laura Borden
1
, Danny Kent
1
, Mackenzie Neale
1
,
Crystal Kulcsar
1
, Ruby Banwait
1
, and Laura Trethewey
1
1
Ocean Wise Conservation Association, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
The Ocean Wise Conservation Association (OWCA, ocean.org) is a global ocean conservation organization focused
on protecting and restoring our world’s oceans.
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