Create federal ship recycling standards
Petitioners ask the Government of Canada to set enforceable federal ship‑recycling standards at or above the EU regulation, fund reputable recyclers via loans or grants, and develop a strategy to recycle federally owned end‑of‑life vessels. The government responds that Transport Canada is reviewing options; no federal ship‑recycling rule or assistance exists; PSPC is developing one.
Why we would sign this petition
- Creates binding, enforceable standards aligned with EU rules to reduce hazardous materials releases and better protect coastal environments and workers.
- Financial support (loans or grants) helps established recyclers upgrade facilities and meet new standards, supporting safer domestic recycling capacity.
- A federal strategy for federally owned vessels centralizes planning, improves coordination across departments, and helps meet international obligations like the Basel Convention.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Waste management and occupational safety are largely provincial responsibilities; federal standards could duplicate or conflict with provincial rules, complicating enforcement and jurisdictional coordination.
- Providing loans, grants and enforcing new standards would require federal funding and administrative capacity, raising cost and feasibility concerns.
- Stricter federal requirements could raise domestic recycling costs and, in the short term, push owners to export ships to foreign yards or reduce national recycling activity.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
PETITION TO THE HOUSE OF COMMONS IN PARLIAMENT ASSEMBLED We, the undersigned residents of Canada, draw the attention of the House of Commons in Parliament Assembled to the following: Whereas: 1. There are significant risks to workers and the environment associated with ship recycling due to the presence of a wide variety of hazardous materials in end-of-life marine vessels such as the unauthorized ship recycling activities occurring in Union Bay, British Columbia; 2. Unlike other jurisdictions, Canada lacks standards on ship recycling and unregulated ship recycling activities which are putting our oceans, coastal communities and workers at risk; and 3. The lack of domestic oversight of ship recycling and disposal of end-of-life marine vessels frustrates Canada's ability to ensure compliance with its international obligations under the Basel Convention. Therefore, we, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to support Motion M-68 and: 1. Develop enforceable federal standards to reduce the negative environmental and social impacts of ship recycling that meet or exceed those set out in the EU Ship Recycling Regulation; 2. Provide assistance through loans or grants to long-term, reputable ship recycling companies to facilitate implementation of new federal standards into their operations; and 3. Develop a strategy for recycling end-of-life federally owned marine vessels.
Government response
Response by the Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Signed by Mike Kelloway The marine transportation industry, which is vital to the Canadian economy, includes the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships at the end of their life. In Canada, the responsibility for regulating waste management is shared among federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments. Provinces and territories, for their part, are responsible for the protection of workers and occupational health and safety at ship recycling facilities. They also regulate the handling, storage, transportation and disposal of hazardous waste produced when recycling a ship, regulate and authorize waste management operations such as landfills and recycling activities, and have the authority to regulate property and civil rights. There are certain existing Transport Canada rules that may apply to ship recycling activities. Under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 or the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act, the department has powers to address pollution discharge, or mitigate the risk of pollution discharge, from a vessel that is still in the water. Further, under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act (CNWA), Transport Canada regulates an owner that proposes to construct, place, alter, rebuild, remove or decommission works that are in, on, over, under, through or across any navigable water. However, under the CNWA, Transport Canada’s mandate focuses on the interference of the work on navigation rather than the ship recycling operation. Transport Canada is currently analyzing if there are opportunities to strengthen the federal approach with respect to the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships. This includes examining requirements that are specific to vessels under the European Union Ship Recycling Regulation and the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. There is currently no federal requirement specific to ship recycling. For this reason, no federal assistance program has been considered at this time. Response by the Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement and Québec Lieutenant Signed by Jenna Sudds Marine fleet managing departments across the federal government continue to work towards ensuring the federal fleet is managed in a sustainable manner that achieves best value for Canadians, which includes operational readiness, environmental protection, value for money, and increased collaboration with Indigenous communities. Industry engagement sessions and workshops have been underway for fiscal year 2025-2026 and onwards to ensure suppliers, impacted communities and marine organizations understand Canada’s planned program of work. As previously disclosed, Public Services and Procurement Canada is leading an interdepartmental initiative to establish a formalized strategy for recycling end-of-life federally-owned marine vessels. This strategy has included: an overview of the forecasted volume of federal fleet to be recycled, applicable regulatory and policy framework, the impact of applicable trade agreements, mapping of vessel recycling permit requirements across Canada, an analysis of various methods of disposal, current national vessel recycling capacity, and process maps for relevant partner departments. Over the summer and fall of 2025, progress has included continuous engagement with stakeholders within industry and government, and moving the effort forward through internal governance of the department. Among other venues for engagement, Public Services and Procurement Canada has joined the Leadership Group for Alberni Valley Ship Recycling and will use that forum to receive feedback and provide updates when available.