Enewsletter

The Nooksack Dace is a tiny, endangered minnow that is making big waves in species protection across the country.

A Federal Court found that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans broke the law in deleting habitat maps from a draft recovery strategy for the Nooksack Dace, a small fish measuring just 10.5 cm long. Justice Douglas Campbell ruled on September 9, 2009 that the government must identify critical habitat in recovery strategies for species at risk in order to follow Canada's Species at Risk Act.

Nature Canada participated in research in 2007 that pointed out the absence of critical habitat in the Nooksack Dace recovery strategy despite the fact that the data on habitat was known. Ecojustice used this key background information to bring the case to trial.

In his statement, the judge said that the lawsuit was "absolutely necessary" and described the case as "a story about the creation and application of policy by the minister in clear contravention of the law, and a reluctance to be held accountable for failure to follow the law."

The judge also determined that critical habitat for a species at risk includes environmental characteristics – such as water temperature, depth and current – that are critical to the species, not just an area on a map.

Adult Nooksack Dace typically occur in riffles in fast-flowing streams or large rivers with loose gravel or stony bottoms. In Canada, the fish is confined to four small streams in the lower Fraser Valley of southwestern British Columbia. This habitat must now be included in the revised recovery strategy for the species.

The ruling sets a precedent for all endangered species listed by the Act.

"Habitat loss is the primary cause of decline for species at risk in Canada," said Sarah Wren of Nature Canada. "Identifying critical habitat in a recovery strategy will be a sign of credibility for the plan."

The Canadian Parliament is in the midst of a legislative review of the Species at Risk Act (SARA). As a founding member of the Species at Risk Advisory Committee, Nature Canada will ensure examination of and action upon the inadequacies in SARA implementation that have been highlighted by this and other recent court cases.