Enforce Fisheries Act s.36
Petitioners ask the government to enforce Fisheries Act s.36 to stop pollution in Baynes Sound and adopt federal ship‑recycling standards matching Hong Kong and EU Conventions. The government responds that ECCC enforces s.36 and CEPA via inspections, while ship‑recycling oversight is mainly provincial and under review by Transport Canada.
Why we would sign this petition
- Enforcing s.36 would apply existing federal law to stop deleterious discharges harming fish habitat in Baynes Sound.
- Federal ship‑recycling standards aligned with Hong Kong and EU Conventions would set consistent, enforceable rules to reduce environmental and social harms from ship recycling.
- Federal inspections and enforcement could increase accountability and speed remediation after verified toxic discharges.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Enforcement and new federal standards may duplicate provincial authority and complicate jurisdiction, as the petition and responses acknowledge shared responsibilities.
- Creating and enforcing federal ship‑recycling rules could be costly and administratively complex, potentially delaying action.
- The petition assumes federal action is the best immediate fix; cooperative federal–provincial measures or focused provincial enforcement might be more practical in some cases.
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 Tests by The BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy in an area of Baynes Sound on June 26, 2024, found discharges of effluent with toxins at both acute and chronic concentrations, exceeding B.C. Water Quality Guidelines. Copper, lead and zinc all surpassed the chronic levels set out by the guidelines with copper at 23,950 per cent above, lead at 1,200 per cent above and Zinc at 7,320 per cent above chronic levels; A Pollution Abatement Order was issued in January 2024 which stated 96-hour toxicity/lethality test results failed, which is the threshold (LC50) the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Canada uses before they take action; and Environment and Climate Change Canada agrees and supports compliance with BC Water Quality Guidelines. We, the undersigned, citizens of Canada, call upon the House of Commons in Parliament assembled to: 1. Ask the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Canada to use their mandate to enforce s.36 of the Fisheries Act in order to help stop the pollution of Baynes Sound; and 2. Develop enforceable federal standards to reduce the negative environmental and social impacts of ship recycling that meet or exceed those set out in the Hong Kong and EU Conventions for the safe recycling of ships.
Government response
Response by the Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature Signed by The Honourable Julie Dabrusin 1. Ask the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Canada to use their mandate to enforce s.36 of the Fisheries Act in order to help stop the pollution of Baynes Sound. Environment and Climate Change Canada administers and enforces the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, and subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act which prohibits the deposit of deleterious substances into water frequented by fish. These Acts and their regulations are enforced in accordance with the environmental compliance and enforcement policies, which are publicly available online here. Environment and Climate Change Canada is aware of the issues raised by the Concerned Citizens of Baynes Sound. Enforcement officers have conducted numerous inspections to verify compliance with the Act(s) and regulations. Enforcement officers may continue to conduct inspections as per Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Compliance and Enforcement Policy for habitat and pollution prevention provisions of Fisheries Act and the Compliance and Enforcement Policy for the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. 2. Develop enforceable federal standards to reduce the negative environmental and social impacts of ship recycling that meet or exceed those set out in the Hong Kong and EU Conventions for the safe recycling of ships. While ship recycling facilities are considered local, private sector businesses and are therefore regulated under provincial, territorial, and municipal environmental protection and waste management legislation, Environment and Climate Change Canada remains committed to ensuring compliance with the above Acts and their regulations. Response by the Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Signed by Mike Kelloway The marine transportation industry is vital to the Canadian economy, which includes the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships at the end of their life. In Canada, the responsibility for regulating waste management, including ship recycling, 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. In some circumstances, there are Transport Canada rules that may apply to ships and works used in recycling activities. Under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001, 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, Transport Canada jointly administers the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act with the Department of National Defence through the Canadian Coast Guard. Under the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act, the Canadian Coast Guard has some powers to address problem vessels when they pose a hazard. Transport Canada administers parts of the Act to address abandoned vessels or vessels unfit for safe navigation that do not pose a risk to the environment and the public. Finally, 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 aware of the potential for significantly increased demand for ship recycling services in Canada in the coming years and is currently considering relevant international treaties and approaches being taken in other countries to determine if there are opportunities to improve Canada’s ship recycling framework.