Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Hull Maintenance at Boatyards and Marinas

Welcome to the Pacific and Yukon Region Hull Maintenance BMP website. This website provides links to information resources for:

Environmental best management
practices (BMPs)
Antifouling paints for boat hulls
Pollution prevention

The Fisheries Act
Other information about marinas,
boatyards, and "Green Boating"
practices

This information is applicable to all sectors and to vessels of all sizes that use antifouling paint. The information is useful for boat owners, contractors, and anyone who owns, operates, oversees, or conducts hull maintenance at a boatyard.

Also available for download on this website are the hull maintenance brochures for commercial and recreational boaters and for boatyards.

Paper copies of the brochures are available from Environment Canada.

A boatyard is defined as any facility (i.e., marina, harbour) that offers or allows hull maintenance.

These resources can help you identify environmental practices that can be implemented at your boatyard.

Boaters Brochure

Boatyard Brochure

What's New:

Hull Wash Water Management Options at Boatyards and Marinas html or pdf

Signage for Hull Maintenance Facilities

Environment Canada has developed three different signs for hull maintenance facilities to help communicate to facility users:

the toxic effects of antifouling paint on aquatic life;
the pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act and its penalties; and
hull maintenance environmental best management practices.

The signs are available to operators free of charge. They can be ordered by contacting Environment Canada at (604) 664-9100 (phone) or boatyards.pyr@ec.gc.ca (e-mail). To view the signs, visit the links below.

Attention Boaters! Sign html or pdf
Tidal Grid Use Sign html or pdf
Best Practices Sign html or pdf

Hull Maintenance Best Management Practices Workshops

(October 17-20, 2006)

During the week of October 17, Environment Canada facilitated three Boat Hull Maintenance Best Management Practices Workshops in Vancouver, Nanaimo and Victoria. The workshops brought together the boating community, wastewater treatment system industry and various levels of government to discuss the effective prevention of anti-fouling paint residues entering the aquatic environment during paint removal activities. The workshops were attended by representatives of approximately 70 boatyards and marinas in British Columbia. Boatyard, marina and shipyard operators had the opportunity to share their individual challenges related to containing and treating paint residues, and several wastewater treatment system companies were able to offer some potential solutions to their problems. Environment Canada provided a variety of tools and resources to the operators and addressed many concerns and questions about the Boatyard Program. Electronic copies of the workshop presentations and hand-outs can be found at the BC Marine Trades Association website.