Pacific Marine Ecozone - Human Activities

Legend 1. Fishing boat 2. Sailing and recreation 3. Tourism, shipping

The temperate climate, esthetically pleasing scenery, and often healthy economy make Canada's Pacific Coast a most desirable place to live. As a result, it is the fastest growing population centre in the country. By 2016, the population of greater Vancouver is expected to reach 5 million. Throughout the ecozone, fishing, shipping, tourism and marine recreation are the main human activities contributing to the area's high standard of living. But these lucrative and popular activities, along with pollution from ship traffic, urban run-off, destruction of shoreline habitat, and industrial pollution, are also in combination the main sources of ecological stress. In 1967, overfishing led to the collapse of herring stocks. Government restrictions allowed the stocks to rebuild and, by 1993, most of the Pacific Herring stocks were in good condition. Today, salmon stocks are being overfished and continue to decline to dangerously low levels.