As part of an initiative to improve marine safety, enhance emergency response capacity, and protect Canada’s coastline, the Canadian Government is investing $1.5 billion dollars into its Oceans Protection Plan. Funding will be distributed over a five year period, commencing in 2017-18.
The core priorities for this plan, aside from restoring and protecting Canada’s waters and ecosystems, is to improve responsible shipping – through new preventative and response measures, invest in oil spill clean-up research – to aid decision making in emergency situations, remove abandoned boats that pose a hazard in Canadian waters, and strengthen partnerships with indigenous communities.
The plan is also focused on improving marine traffic congestion in Canada, and improving the identification and management of anchorages, which are necessary for efficient shipping and navigation in Canada’s busy ports.
In association with the marine industry, Indigenous peoples, community organisations and stakeholders, the Government is working hard to ensure that marine shipping practises in Canada are safe and consider the protection of the environment and coastal ecosystems. As part of this initiative, they will be investigating and responding to environmental, economic, cultural, safety and security concerns, and developing a manual outlining best practices for ships at anchor.
The Canadian government is also creating a new maritime awareness information system so that Canada’s Indigenous communities have increased access to local data on marine traffic and other maritime information. By incorporating both existing and new sources of information, Indigenous people and those living in coastal communities, in association with safety authorities, will be able to work together to better safeguard the coastal environment and improve responses to marine emergencies.