Howe Sound, with its sweeping fjords, forested islands and unique underwater ecosystems, is one step closer to becoming the third B.C. region to achieve UNESCO biosphere reserve status.
On Dec. 3, the Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative Society announced it had submitted a nomination package for Howe Sound to Paris for review by the International Advisory Committee.
“Howe Sound is such an important recreation area – it’s a gateway to Squamish and Whistler and points north,” said Gibsons Mayor Bill Beamish.
The designation wouldn’t just benefit the sound, but also the watersheds feeding into it, said Beamish.
“Part of our Health Harbour and Source to Sea [project] is concerned with natural assets…. It’s very consistent with the direction our council has taken. It was an easy initiative to endorse.”
Earlier this year the Town passed a resolution to support the submission, along with the other municipalities belonging to the Howe Sound Community Forum.
Biosphere reserves contain land, water and coastal ecosystems and are used to promote solutions that reconcile “conservation of biodiversity” with “sustainable use,” according to UNESCO’s website. They are considered “learning places for sustainable development.”
While the goals are aspirational, Beamish said the designation could attract tourists to places such as the “underutilized” Sea to Sky Marine Trail, open since 2015.
The International Advisory Committee will next give recommendations regarding the application between April and May 2021. If everything goes according to plan, Howe Sound will receive a formal designation by the winter of 2021.
“We are four and a half years into the rigorous process for attaining this designation, and we are proud that our nomination document meets the high standards required for submission to UNESCO,” said Ruth Simons, project lead of the society in a news release.
Former Sunshine Coast Regional District director Ian Winn has also championed the initiative.
The society’s application was endorsed by the Canadian Commission for UNESCO in September, the final major endorsement needed before heading to Paris.
The CCUNESCO serves as a bridge between Canadians and UNESCO.
There are about 700 biosphere reserves in the world, 18 of which are in Canada. Clayoquot Sound and Mount Arrowsmith on Vancouver Island are the only places in B.C. with UNESCO Biosphere Reserve designations.
– with files from The Squamish Chief
