Tag: Canada

Canada has no intention of allowing the state of New York to dictate ballast water regulations Well-attended ballast water policy teleconference briefing by the Canadian Minister of Transport served notice that Canada has no intention of allowing the state of New York to dictate ballast water regulations, nor impede commerce on the St. Laurence Seaway.The message delivered by Canada's Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Pierre Poilievre, was simple enough: we do not agree with the state of New York on ballast water issues and we will not allow our ocean commerce to suffer because of it. The teleconference, broadcast from Ottawa, provided a briefing on ballast water requirements on the St. Lawrence Seaway.Poilievre told journalists on Thursday morning, "Canada is very concerned with the New York ballast water standard." Referring to New York's position of a ballast water treatment standard that is 100 times more stringent than the IMO's soon-to-be-ratified benchmark, he added that New York's position, if enforced, could shut down traffic, domestic trade and trade with the United States. Today, Poilievre is scheduled to be in New York to discuss Canadian concerns with ...

Voyage Data Recorder Regulations for marine safety The Honourable DenisLebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, today announced that under new regulations, certain large passenger and cargo vessels will be required to have voyage data recorders. Similar to an airplane's black box, the equipment captures critical information to help investigations into accidents at sea."The safety of vessels is a priority for our government and we are committed to making continuous enhancements in marine safety," said MinisterLebel. "Should an accident occur, information from a vessel's voyage data recorder can be used to help investigators learn more quickly and more thoroughly the cause and what can be done to help prevent a reoccurrence."The Voyage Data Recorder Regulations will require, as of January1,2012, that new passenger vessels of 500gross tonnage or more and new cargo vessels of 3,000gross tonnage or more not engaged on an international voyage be fitted with voyage data recorders. Owners of existing passenger vessels have until July1,2015, to install the equipment, depending on their inspection schedule. The new safety measure addresses a Transportation Safety Board recommendation highlighted in its Watchlist earlier this year.The regulations also implement the voyage data recorder requirements under the International Convention for the Safety of ...

Marine Liability Act On October25,2011, Canada took part in a ceremony to sign a protocol that will establish a global liability regime and further protect our environment from the risks of marine transport. The Protocol of2010 to the International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea,1996 was signed at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London, UnitedKingdom. Canada was one of the states that led the development of this important protocol at the IMO.The protocol will be tabled in Parliament this fall, and subsequently amendments to the Marine Liability Act will be introduced to implement the protocol by ensuring that compensation is available for victims of marine pollution and that polluters are held responsible. Following its ratification, Canada will be able to implement the protocol."Canada is a trading nation that depends to a large degree on marine transport for its exports and imports, and it is vital that we have strong rules to protect our environment," said the Honourable DenisLebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. "These amendments will provide increased levels of compensation to those affected by pollution from hazardous and noxious substances that is caused by ...

New regulations will put 72,000 jobs and $10.7 billion on both borders at serious risk. Last week New York state officials announced that they will be implementing stringent ballast water treatment standards for all vessels crossing the St. Lawrence, which according to a new study will put 72,000 jobs and $10.7 billion on both borders at serious risk.While the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway already possesses some of the strictest regulations when it comes to the prevention of invasive species via ballast water, New York is going to require that all ships transiting through its waters to install equipment that will sterilize ballast water to a standard 100 to 1,000 times the current international standards. The legislation says that the ships must have the equipment installed for 100 times international standard by August 1st, 2013, and 1,000 times standard by August 1st, 2014.Scientists and shipping industry are both left appalled, as the regulations would nearly choke all trade between the passages. Executives of the Canadian St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp., the U.S. St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. and various shipping firms have said that this type of regulation is impossible to meet. A study by Martin Associates, an economic consulting ...

Threatening the economies of all trading nations, including Canada The first pirates Capt. Steve Waddell encountered weren't wearing puffy shirts, tri-cornered hats or as much dark eyeliner as Disney's Jack Sparrow.Instead they were decked out in Gucci watches and ill-fitting Armani suits, claiming to be Somali fishermen aboard a small, open-decked skiff Waddell and his crew confronted in the treacherous seas off the Horn of Africa."I'm not sure why they considered that pirate attire," said Waddell, who in 2009 commanded the frigate HMCS Fredericton on one of Canada's first anti-piracy naval missions to the region.A Canadian boarding party confronted the skiff, confiscated guns and gasoline from the group, and sent them back to the Somali coast. Waddell watched as the Somalis high-fived each other, happy to be released, as they motored away from the warship."That's the reality of anti-piracy operations off Somalia," Waddell told an audience of lawyers with the Canadian Bar Association on Tuesday.He and other experts, who spoke at the bar's annual meeting in Halifax, say piracy is a serious, resurgent security issue that threatens the economies of all trading nations, including Canada.Worse, solutions to the problem remain far from clear.Among the thorny questions facing maritime and military ...

Ships will prefer passing through northern Russia as ice continues to melt Russian Arctic shipping routes would attract more traffic than Canada's Northwest Passage - both made increasingly accessible by melting polar ice - a French envoy predicted Monday."I have the impression that Canada has given up on the competition to attract a large part of the traffic in 25 or 30 years," said France's roving ambassador for polar regions Michel Rocard.The former French prime minister spoke to AFP in Montreal after a tour of the Arctic aboard the Canadian icebreaker Amundsen."The road eastward along the Siberian coast is less winding (than the Northwest Passage in Canada's north) . . . there are fewer islands (to navigate around) and finally, it has fewer risks and is more direct, even if it's a bit longer," he said.Russia currently requires that any vessel or convoy travelling along its northern frontier be accompanied by two icebreakers, Rocard said.But U.S. researchers have said global warming could leave the region ice-free by 2030.Canada is "too small to finance itself the infrastructure" needed to spur commercial shipping through in its Arctic - a shorter route between European and Asian markets than the Suez and Panama canals.Russia ...

A $3.3 billion plan to beef up Arctic security Canada is going ahead with a $3.3 billion plan to beef up Arctic security and assert its sovereignty amid competing measures by other countries increasingly interested in the thawing region's immense potential.The funds will be used to build up to eight Arctic/Offshore Patrol Ships, the navy said. In addition to more than $3 billion in acquiring the vessels, another $4.5 billion will be needed to maintain them over an expected 25-year lifespan.International efforts to flag ownership of parts of the Arctic has heated up in recent years as Arctic ice melts, offering numerous opportunities including alternative maritime routes.Canada is keen to stamp its sovereignty on the area it sees as its own amid frequent challenges from Russia. It has bolstered and extended its military presence but is only now beginning to boost its forces.In the current and future security environment, Canada must have effective tools for exercising control of Canada's Exclusive Economic Zones, the 200-nautical-mile limit in all three oceans, particularly the Arctic, the Canadian navy said.The navy ordered new ships to enable it to effectively patrol the Arctic even when iced. At present navy craft can only navigate the Arctic ...

The new ferry design will be employed on the south shore routes Danish ship designer Knud E. Hansen, in partnership with Fleetway, has recently signed a contract with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada for the basic design of a series of six ferries for Newfoundland.Hansen says that this is the second such arrangement between the two companies, with the basic design well underway for an 80m ro-pax ferry for year-round operation on the Fogo Island route off the coast of Newfoundland.The new ferry design, to be employed on the south shore routes, will be developed in close consultation with the end user to ensure that when built the ferries are optimised for the routes, conditions and requirements of the operators.This, says the company,goes against the current trend for mass-produced designs which loosely fit broad requirements built around major equipment. It believes that meeting end user requirements is particularly important for vessels operating in the sometimes-harsh Canadian climate. As such, aswith the Fogo project, the new vessels will be ice strengthened and designed for year-round operation.The operating areas for the small but versatile south shore ferries have a reputation for being rough, requiring vessels with good sea keeping ...

Ship brought Sri Lankan refugees to Canada Four Sri Lankan nationals have been arrested in Toronto in connection with a human-smuggling operation involving the freighter Ocean Lady, which brought 76 Sri Lankan refugee claimants to B.C. in 2009.The men are the first to face charges after Canadian security officials seized the freighter off the coast of British Columbia on Oct. 17, 2009.The four are alleged to have been involved with organizing the overall venture and of being active leaders on the vessel. They have been charged via direct indictment under human-smuggling legislation, specifically for the offence of organizing entry into Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.Vignarajah Thevarajah, 33, Francis Anthonimuthu Appulonappa, 33, Hamalraj Handasamy, 39, and Jeyachandran Kanagarajah, 32, have been remanded in custody as the investigation continues. At a later date they will be transported back to Vancouver to appear before a judge.The men were living in the Toronto-area, when arrested.Police said they had an opportunity to interview a number of the people onboard which helped them in making the arrests."We had an opportunity to interview a number of potential witnesses and suspects in this investigation and the evidence that we gleaned from those interviews, it was ...