By John Weston
Published: March 21, 2018
What did you think about when you got up this morning? I was putting the finishing touches on a new website. You were doing something else. It’s safe to say that neither of us was thinking about abandoned vessels.
But this lingering problem, the waste it caused, and the environmental damage called out for change. Here’s what some of us did, which shows why persistence and good strategy can pay off to change government policy and make things right.
The Bill didn’t pass. It died with the last Federal government, in June 2015. But the story has a positive outcome. The current Liberal government contributed formal funding to deal with the problem.
As a Member of Parliament, I saw the blight caused by irresponsible people who dumped their boats like parkland litter. They left a trail of pollution, eyesores, harmful waste, and legal liability. Directionless governments floundered and evaded responsibility. As many of you will recall, in one case, a single person acquired and casually abandoned four separate vessels off the coast of Squamish, B.C.
I introduced Private Member’s Bill C-695 in the House of Commons in 2015, reflecting input from a wide variety of people who cared about the health of our seas, tourism, navigational safety, and saving taxpayers’ funds.
The issue seemed intractable, cutting across various departments within the Federal and provincial governments, as well as local government jurisdiction. Governments were loath to take responsibility. Abandoned vessels can be costly to remove and give rise to various types of liability.
My Bill proposed for the first time that anyone who intentionally abandoned a vessel be subject to a fine or jail term. It attracted support from mariners, local governments, the transport minister, the Conservative Party of Canada, and even my Liberal opponent in the last election.
The Bill didn’t pass. It died with the last Federal government, in June 2015. But the story has a positive outcome. The current Liberal government contributed formal funding to deal with the problem. It created a program to educate boat owners how to manage and recycle their vessels responsibly, rather than merely abandon them.
And in October 2017, it introduced legislation to do exactly what my bill proposed—make persons accountable for their actions. The new Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act will for the first time make it explicitly illegal to abandon boats, while empowering the government to go after the owners of the 600 derelict vessels already polluting the country’s waterways.
If the bill becomes law, individuals who abandon a boat can face fines up to $300,000 and a six-month jail term, while corporations can be fined as much as $6 million.
People and companies who share my concerns about government and public affairs should take heart. With perseverance, good strategy, and the collaboration of like-minded allies, you can change even the most complicated of government policies.
John Weston is a lawyer and author and former Member of Parliament (West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country).
Jim says
John needs to be thanked for his action on this issue, so I say “Thank You” I will however say that I don’t think the outcome is broad enough. There is little attention paid to the so called live aboard’s strewn along our protected waterways, such the Blind channel and Cattermole slough. I understand that a percentage of our population use these vessels as there primary residence. However they are not hooked to any domestic sewer or garbage collection. There is a free pump out station for their holding tanks at the Government dock, and I am sure that they could find a place to dispose of their garbage close to where they are moored.
Get real and responsible folks and no one would object to your choice of lifestyle or housing.