Bill C-437
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1st Session, 41st Parliament,
60-61 Elizabeth II, 2011-2012
house of commons of canada
BILL C-437
An Act to amend the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (prohibition against the transportation of oil by oil tankers on Canada's Pacific North Coast)
Whereas Canada’s quality of life is closely connected to the sea, and the oceans are an integral part of our environmental, social, cultural and economic fabric;
Whereas the ocean environments within Canada’s exclusive economic zone are a world treasure, home to some of the most abundant and diverse webs of marine life on earth;
Whereas it is in the public interest of Canadians to protect the ocean’s vital natural resources;
Whereas the coastal and inland areas adjacent to the Pacific North Coast of Canada constitute the Great Bear Rainforest, the largest intact, coastal temperate rainforest left in the world;
Whereas Canada recognizes that oceans offer significant economic and cultural resources, and opportunities for economic diversification, which benefit all Canadians, and particularly coastal communities;
Whereas the sustainable economic development of the Pacific North Coast region, and especially economic opportunity in remote communities, is highly dependent on investment and employment in sectors requiring healthy ecosystems, such as fisheries and tourism;
Whereas the transportation of oil by oil tankers in certain areas of the sea adjacent to the coast of Canada poses a risk to the marine and coastal environment, to the communities that depend on that environment and to all Canadians who share in the common heritage of the oceans;
Whereas the Pacific North Coast of Canada is presently free from the risk of an oil tanker spill, as oil tankers do not currently travel in the areas of the sea known as Queen Charlotte Sound, Hecate Strait and Dixon Entrance;
Whereas alternative routes exist for the current and projected sale and transport of Canadian oil to export markets;
And whereas the Parliament of Canada wishes to affirm in law the protection of the Pacific North Coast of Canada from oil tanker spills;
2001, c. 26
Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
1. The Canada Shipping Act, 2001 is amended by adding the following after section 189:
Prohibition
Interpretation
Definitions
189.1 The following definitions apply in sections 189.2 and 189.3.
“gas”
« gaz »
« gaz »
“gas” means natural gas and includes all substances, other than oil, that are produced in association with natural gas.
“oil”
« pétrole »
« pétrole »
“oil” means
(a) crude petroleum, regardless of gravity, produced at a well-head in liquid form, and
(b) any other hydrocarbons, except coal and gas, including hydrocarbons that may be extracted or recovered from surface or subsurface deposits, such as deposits of oil sand, bitumen, bituminous sand or oil shale,
and includes oil that has been treated to render it suitable for transportation.
“oil tanker”
« pétrolier »
« pétrolier »
“oil tanker” means a vessel that is constructed or adapted primarily to carry oil in a hold or tank that is part of the structure of the vessel, without any intermediate form of containment.
Prohibition
189.2 (1) No person shall transport oil in an oil tanker in the areas of the sea adjacent to the coast of Canada known as Queen Charlotte Sound, Hecate Strait and Dixon Entrance, as described in Schedule 4 and depicted in the map set out in Schedule 5.
For greater certainty
(2) For greater certainty, the prohibition in subsection (1) does not apply in respect of the transportation of gasoline, aviation fuel, diesel oil or fuel oil that is intended for use in coastal and island communities in Canada.
2. Subsection 191(1) of the Act is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (c) and by adding the following after that paragraph:
(c.1) section 189.2 (prohibition against operation of oil tanker in specified area);
3. The Act is amended by adding, after Schedule 3, Schedules 4 and 5 set out in the schedule to this Act.