Policy on sensitive information about species at risk
Section 18 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act states:
The head of a public body may refuse to disclose information to an applicant if the disclosure could reasonably be expected to result in damage to, or interfere with the conservation of,
a) fossil sites, natural sites, or sites that have an anthropological or heritage value,
b) an endangered, threatened or vulnerable species, subspecies or race of plants, vertebrates or invertebrates, or
c) any other rare or endangered living resource.
Government policy on disclosure of sensitive information on species at risk is outlined in the Information and Privacy Handbook, and Freedom of Information: Formal Access Requests - Policies on Exceptions C.4.9. The Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks is currently developing policy and procedures on access to sensitive information about species at risk consistent with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (contact the provincial endangered species specialist in Victoria).
Ministry staff will routinely disclose information on the vast majority of species at risk, except in cases where disclosure could interfere with the conservation of that species. For example, disclosing the location of some snake or bat hibernacula through publication of a WHA could result in direct persecution of the animals at those sites. As well, the location of nest sites of some birds (particularly falcons) should not be disclosed in order to prevent illegal collection of eggs.
WHAs associated with sensitive information about species at risk will be marked as such on forest district maps. Regional rare and endangered species specialists will distribute information on these WHAs to licensees and the general public on a need-to-know basis consistent with government policy and procedures.
Mapping procedure
This section describes the mapping methodologies for delineating WHAs and mapping standards for map submissions, including base map specifications, standards for duplicating physiographic features, and symbology. It is important that WHAs are mapped in a consistent manner through-out the province for tracking and monitoring purposes. Map WHAs on hardcopy TRIM maps according to the following mapping procedure and standards. The basic steps for developing a WHA are outlined in Figure 2 and described below.
1. WHA site data
Wildlife habitat areas will largely be determined using known occurrences. There are several data sources available to provide species-specific site data. Site data, or species occurrence data, can be tied to a point (e.g., UTM co-ordinates for a nest site or an observed occurrence), a line (e.g., a stream), or an area (e.g., a foraging area or wetland). Site data can be obtained from:
2. WHA size
The WHA size has been determined based on knowledge of species biology, such as home range, area required to limit disturbance, or specific habitat types. WHAs may have a designated core around a habitat feature (e.g., nest, stream, wetland) or plant community and a buffer to protect the integrity of the core. The size and position of the WHA may be adjusted to incorporate such attributes as habitat use, land features or administrative boundaries.
3. Key habitat attributes
Key attributes should be used along with buffer data, map themes and field data to outline a WHA. Refer to Species and Plant Community Accounts for Identified Wildlife for more information.
4. Map themes
The map themes outlined in Table 2 may be useful when designing WHAs, however, themes are not limited to those shown. Use the most recent maps whenever possible. Other sources may be useful for detailed analysis (e.g., air photos, bedrock or surficial geology maps).
Note: Maps referenced to NAD27 can not be directly transferred to NAD83 maps. The neat lines on NAD83 based mapping will move east and north relative to those of NAD27 based mapping.
Figure 2. Wildlife habitat area mapping procedure.
Using site data and recommended WHA size, sketch approximate WHA boundaries on TRIM base map. When appropriate, WHA boundaries may need to be adjusted to follow key habitat or physical attributes (e.g., elevation, water feature, road, forest cover attributes) as determined from key habitat attributes, map sources and field checking.
The boundaries of some WHAs will be delineated solely by the recommended buffer width. The determination of other WHAs, however, will require an analysis of habitat suitability or capability based on the known habitat requirements of a species. A combination of these approaches may also be necessary.
Preliminary WHA boundaries must be checked in the field and adjusted to accommodate site conditions, such as physical attributes and habitat use. For example, if it is found that the post-fledging area of a northern goshawk extends to the south of the nest rather than a specific radius around the nest, adjust the buffer to include the appropriate area.
A full description of the methodology used to determine WHA boundaries and the rationale for the WHA must be indicated on the WHA data form (Appendix 7) and included with each map submission.
Provincial standards have been developed to ensure that WHAs are submitted in an acceptable format for digitizing and the necessary data are submitted with all hardcopy maps. Forest cover, biophysical and ecosystem unit maps and other sources of information will likely be used in the delineation of WHA boundaries; however, transfer all boundary lines to a 1:20 000 TRIM map for final production.
| Base map: | TRIM UTM/NAD83 |
| Scale: | 1:20 000 |
| Format: | Paper/hardcopy |
Colour code boundaries according to the following scheme (Table 3).
Label each WHA polygon with a letter placed outside of the WHA boundary. The species or community represented by each letter should be indicated in the legend at the margin of the map. A single WHA may be suitable for multiple species. If this is the case, list all species.
In some cases, WHAs may overlap other WHAs or be nested within another WHA (Figure 3).
A hypothetical example of a legend describing several WHAs and their representative species follows:
| A grizzly, bull trout B gopher snake, Brewer's sparrow C American white pelican |
If a WHA overlaps more than one map sheet, draw an arrow off the edge of the map to indicate that there is continuation on an adjoining sheet. Submit all map sheets together.
Each wildlife feature protected within a WHA should be indicated on the map (Table 4). Use a small red `x' to indicate the location of the feature, whether a point, a line or an area. When there is more than one feature within a WHA, number x's consecutively. Explain symbology in the map legend.
Figure 3. Examples of WHA mapping.
The following information must be included for each proposed WHA.
- all colours and line styles used to delineate physiographic features or habitat and a description of each
- Identified Wildlife species or community name. When there are multiple species or communities, WHAs must be lettered and species within each WHA listed (i.e., A, B, C...).
- a description of marked habitat features ( e.g., X1, X2, X3...).
A WHA data form must be filled out and submitted to WHA Technical Committee for each proposed WHA (see Appendix 7).
