Love Our Oceans
DonateThe mission of the SCCA is to seek protection for lands and waters of significance to the preservation of biological diversity and to undertake public education about the importance of preserving and enhancing biological diversity. Our work applies to both marine and freshwater ecosystems, nearshore and shoreline habitats.
What's At Stake
The marine and foreshore ecosystems of the Sunshine Coast face growing threats from climate change, pollution, habitat destruction, and coastal development. Rising sea levels, degraded water quality, and the spread of invasive species are putting pressure on wildlife and coastal habitats. Shoreline armouring, marine debris, and industrial activities further erode ecosystem health.
Through our Love Our Oceans campaign, the SCCA is working to protect these vital ecosystems and the biodiversity they support.
Sunshine Coast Ocean Festival
Every year on June 8th - the United Nations' World Oceans Day - people around the world celebrate the many ways the world's oceans benefit our lives. That week, the SCCA hosts an annual Sunshine Coast Ocean Festival, in collaboration with Rhizome UP! Media and the Green Film Series.
June 1- 8, 2025, festival launch, coming soon!
Watch past NEMO talks, short films, and feature films from the 2024 festival on the Sunshine Coast Ocean Festival website.
What We've Achieved So Far
2022 Southern Resident Killer Whale Management Measures
For the month of February, 2022, the Government of Canada invited Indigenous people, stakeholders and the general public to comment on the Proposed 2022 Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) Management Measures. At the end of April, the Ministers of Transport, Fisheries & Oceans, and Environment & Climate Change, released the finalized 2022 SRKW Management Measures. We thought it might be interesting to compare our submission to the options chosen by the Ministers.
Musings of a Naturalist
While I was busy trying to stay cool one afternoon in early July, I received an email from an acquaintance with a query about a strong stink at the beach, and finding many dead crabs while there with her grandchildren. This piqued my curiosity as to what was happening in our intertidal areas. I learned […]
Reflecting on the World Oceans Day Film Festival 2021
World Oceans Day has typically been a perfect opportunity for the SCCA to engage with its members and the public with an in-person event, celebrating the diversity of the ocean and encouraging people to take action to protect it. This year, the SCCA collaborated with the Green Film Series to offer something slightly different, but […]
World Oceans Day Film Festival June 4-8th, 2021
In celebration of the United Nation’s World Oceans Day, the SCCA is launching our first ever film festival, in collaboration with the Green Film Series and the District of Sechelt. Every year on June 8th, people from all across the planet celebrate the many ways our global ocean benefits our lives and become inspired to protect it. In past years, the SCCA has presented a Sechelt Oceans […]
SCCA attends Oceans Protection Plan Forum 2021
2021 marks the last year of the federally $1.5B funded, nation-wide Oceans Protection Plan (OPP). Dianne Sanford and Angela Kroning, from the SCCA Marine Committee, attended the 7th Pacific Dialogue Forum held virtually Feb 17-19th to learn of the progress made on the initiatives relating to the creation of a world-leading marine safety program and […]
Glass Sponge Reefs protected in Howe Sound
9 Glass Sponge Reefs in Howe Sound are now protected under 8 new marine refuges of approximately 3.5 square kilometres! Announced on Tuesday, March 5th by Fisheries Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and MP Pamela Goldsmith Jones, this permanent protection for the fragile reefs are the result of diligent work by organizations, citizen scientists, the Squamish Nation […]