Protecting Canada's Marine Environments from Polluters

Protecting Canada's coastal areas is a difficult task. Canada has the longest coastline of any nation in the world, 243 000 kilometres – more than six times the distance around the earth's equator.

Each year, on the Atlantic East coast alone, an estimated 300 000 seabirds are killed by illegal bilge oil discharge by passing ships. This bird mortality rate is the equivalent of one Exxon Valdez oil spill happening every year in terms of the impacts on migratory birds.

Bill C-15, which received Royal Assent on May 19, 2005, amends the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994 (MBCA) and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA). The amendments will allow for more effective enforcement of these Acts against marine polluters under Canadian jurisdiction.

Polluters and their Victims

Bilge oil is a harmful mixture of water, oil, lubricants and other pollutants that collect in a ship's hold. Some ships illegally empty their tanks filled with bilge oil before entering port. The discharged waste then makes its way into the sea, poisoning the water.

This deliberate dumping of bilge oil is a major source of oil pollution in Canada's marine waters. It has been common practice by a marginal number of ships, because given the uncertainty surrounding Canadian environmental laws it has often been considered cheaper to dump oil and risk paying a fine, than to go into port and dispose of the bilge oil legally.

One immediate result of this pollution on Canada's coastlines is the death of an estimated 300 000 seabirds off of Canada's East Coast. Environment Canada researchers believe that just as many die off the West Coast.

Oily discharges affect seabirds in several ways, including: drowning, hypothermia, poisoning, loss of flight and ulceration. When birds come in contact with oil, they lose the ability to repel water off their feathers. This exposes them to almost certain death. When trying to clean themselves, the birds can also ingest the oil, which can poison and kill them.

An estimated 30 million seabirds use Canada's eastern coastal waters at all times of the year. Millions of seabirds are present off of the Pacific coast. There are several bird species on both coasts which are already endangered, threatened or vulnerable, leading to additional pressures under the Species at Risk Act.

Bill C-15

Royal Assent for Bill C-15 on May 19, 2005 means that the uncertainty over Environment Canada's authority to enforce the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994 (MBCA), and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) in Canada's exclusive economic zone is resolved. Game officers under the MBCA, and enforcement officers under CEPA can now take action against harmful substances discharged at sea, to protect wildlife and marine waters.

The MBCA was last amended in 1994. The improvements made via Bill C-15 will improve enforcement by providing more tools for game officers and the court system. For instance, Bill C-15 raised the maximum fines in the MBCA for illegal releases of harmful substances into areas frequented by migratory birds from $100 000 to $300 000 for a summary conviction and from $250 000 to $1 000 000 for an indictable offence. The proceeds of all fines imposed by the courts under the MBCA will be given to the Environmental Damages Funds and are required to be used for protecting and conserving migratory birds and the environment. This can mean important remedial projects and protective measures for Canada's migratory birds.