Disposal at Sea Info:

Facts About Disposal at Sea

WHAT IS DISPOSAL AT SEA?

Disposal at sea is the deliberate disposal of approved substances at designated disposal sites in the sea. Approved substances are primarily dredged sediment from river or marine sources and excavated native till. Ships, aircraft, platforms and other structures may also be approved for disposal at sea.

Disposal at Sea is permitted by Canadian law under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA), Part 7, Division 3, Disposal at Sea. The permit system allows Canada to meet international obligations to prevent marine pollution by regulating the disposal of wastes and other matter (under the London Convention 1972 and the 1996 Protocol to the Convention).

 Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHAT IS DISPOSED OF IN THE OCEAN?

In the Pacific and Yukon Region, approved materials for which no beneficial use or practical land-based disposal options can be identified may be disposed at designated disposal at sea sites. This material includes:

• Dredged Material
• Inert, inorganic geological material
• Fish waste
• Uncontaminated organic material of natural origin
• Inert, bulky items such as concrete, steel or other matter
• Vessels, or other structures.

CEPA prohibits the ocean disposal of substances which may be harmful to the marine environment. The disposal of hazardous wastes in Canadian marine waters is prohibited.

Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHO CONTROLS DISPOSAL AT SEA?

Environment Canada administers the Disposal at Sea Program by means of a permitting process under authority of the CEPA, Part 7, Division 3, Disposal at Sea. All proposed ocean disposal projects are reviewed under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and are registered in an on-line public registry. You can view this registry at http://www.ec.gc.ca/ceparegistry/default.cfm.

Applications to load and ocean dispose of material are reviewed by Environment Canada with advice from the Regional Ocean Disposal Advisory Committee (RODAC). This committee includes representation from Environment Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection. An application must include proof of publication of a 'Notice of Intent' (48KB PDF , 28KB DOC) in a newspaper local to the proposed project area. The public is invited to submit comments or concerns with regards to the proposed loading and disposal activities throughout the application process.

Only materials that have been rigorously tested and meet the Ocean Disposal Regulations and the Disposal at Sea Interim Contaminant Testing Guidelines are approved for ocean disposal. All Disposal at Sea permits and permit amendments must be published in the Canada Gazette before they are issued. Guidelines for sampling and testing of these materials are updated regularly to keep pace with new technology.

After a Disposal at Sea permit has been issued, Environment Canada Enforcement Officers may conduct surveillance monitoring and inspections at both the loadsite and disposal site to ensure compliance with permit conditions.

Back Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHY IS DISPOSAL AT SEA NECESSARY?

In British Columbia, coastal topography and the availability of suitable landfill sites are key constraints in waste management strategies. The annual volume of materials dredged and excavated in the Lower Mainland, for which there are no beneficial uses, cannot be accommodated by existing landfill sites. Consequently, ocean disposal has become a practical and economical alternative to landfilling.

All practical land-based and beneficial use alternatives to ocean disposal must be considered and evaluated before an application for disposal at sea is processed. In many cases, disposal at sea is the environmentally preferable disposal option.

In the past, most ocean disposed material originated from channel and harbour maintenance dredging for navigation and industry. In recent years, the amount of excavated native till approved for ocean disposal has increased and now contributes 25-50% of material that is approved for disposal at sea.

Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHERE ARE THE DISPOSAL SITES?

Disposal at Sea sites are designated according to selection criteria established by CEPA. The disposal site selection criteria include:

• Location of fishery resources and habitat
• Evaluation interference with marine use in the area
• Evaluation of mixing and transport characteristics of the site
• Feasibility of monitoring the disposal site

In British Columbia, there are thirty-six designated sites. Only half are used routinely, however.

Click here for a map of the Pacific and Yukon Region disposal at sea sites.

 Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHAT IS DISPOSAL SITE MONITORING?

Disposal site monitoring is an integral part of the Disposal at Sea program and serves several purposes.

The first is to ensure that the permit conditions are met by the permit holder and that the assumptions made during the permit review and site selection process are correct and sufficient to protect the environment.

Monitoring activities provides important feedback to the permit application review phase whereby terms and conditions may be modified as necessary to ensure that marine life and human health are protected. Another vital use of monitoring data is to ensure that regulations, guidelines, and permit conditions are adequate to protect the marine environment.

Disposal sites in the Pacific and Yukon Region have been routinely monitored over the past twenty years. Sediments from the disposal sites are collected and analyzed for chemical, biological and physical parameters. The results indicate that the marine environment at disposal sites has not been significantly affected by disposal at sea.

Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page

WHAT IS NEW IN DISPOSAL AT SEA?

Changes in the Disposal at Sea program do not occur without public consultation. Meetings with stakeholders and discussion papers form an integral part of the public consultation process.

The Disposal at Sea Permit Fee Regulations came into effect on March 17, 1999. A fee of $470 per 1000 cubic metres of material disposed of at sea under a CEPA Part 7, Division 3, Disposal at Sea permit was introduced. This fee affects clients who dispose of dredged or excavated material. Payment of this fee funds the monitoring of Disposal at Sea sites across Canada.

CEPA was proclaimed on March 31, 2000. The revised Act introduces changes that reflect new international approaches to controlling disposal at sea. Briefly, the Act now includes:

• a minimum waiting period of 30 days from a permit's publication in the Canada Gazette, before disposal operations may begin, to allow anyone with a concern to file a notice of objection;
• a set of amendments to existing permits that require the same 30-day period before coming into effect;
• a set of substances (only those listed in Schedule 5 of the Act) that may be considered for disposal at sea;
• a formal assessment framework (Schedule 6) for permit applications based on the precautionary principle;
• a prohibition on exporting any substance for disposal at sea;
• a legal obligation for Environment Canada to monitor disposal sites.

Back to Disposal at Sea Home Page