World Oceans Day event highlights risks to the marine environment
Climate change is opening up Canada's coastline to new commercial opportunities from fishing, shipping and oil and gas exploration, bringing new risks to fragile marine ecosystems.
Marine specialists met on World Oceans Day in June to discuss the economic and environmental impacts of these changes, and the implications for Canada's insurance industry. Attendees included brokers, wind energy experts and Canada's Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Gail Shea.
The event was organised by WWF Canada and RSA to launch their Insurance and the Marine Environment risk report and to highlight efforts to create marine protected areas around Canada's coastline. These protected areas will help to conserve biologically important ecosystems and safeguard fish stocks, benefiting Canada's economy.
Speaking after the event, Kevan Gielty, president of ocean marine insurance specialists Coast Underwriters, said: "For our business to continue to thrive we need to make sure that the industry remains sustainable. If there's less fish for the fishermen to catch, then it's a tougher class to write. We want to succeed and we want the marine eco-system to flourish. We've had a lot of feedback from brokers – including one of our main fishery brokers – telling us what a great initiative this is.
