Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area
Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area (French: Aire marine nationale de conservation du Lac-Supérieur) is a National Marine Conservation Area (NMCA) on the north shore of Lake Superior in Ontario, and is a unit of the national park system. Established on September 1, 2015, it is the largest freshwater marine protected area in the world.
| Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area | |
|---|---|
IUCN category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources) | |
Looking southeast over Lake Superior from Sleeping Giant Provincial Park | |
Location of Lake Superior NMCA in Canada Location of Lake Superior NMCA in Ontario | |
| Location | Northwestern Ontario, Canada |
| Nearest city | Nipigon, Ontario, Canada |
| Coordinates | 48°26′6″N 89°13′14″W |
| Area | 10,000 km² |
| Established | September 1, 2015 |
| Governing body | Parks Canada |
Although national marine parks and a reserve had been created previously, and managed as NMCAs, this was the first area in Canada to be designated a "National Marine Conservation Area" as defined by the Marine Conservation Areas Act. Plans to create it were first announced by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on October 25, 2007, in Nipigon, Ontario. The area is a unit of Canada's national park system administered by Parks Canada.
The conservation area extends 140 kilometres (87 mi) eastward from Thunder Bay, from Thunder Cape in the west, at the tip of Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, to Bottle Point in the east, and stretches southward to the Canada-US border, linking with Isle Royale National Park. The Nipigon River and Lake Nipigon lie to the north.