New water investments for Canada

Funding in hydrography, charting for safer navigation in British Columbia ports, and wastewater science to protect our marine environment

VANCOUVER, Oct. 12, 2017 /CNW/ - Mariners, Indigenous peoples and coastal communities rely heavily on the hydrographic surveys and charts to keep them safe and make a living. The world is also seeing the effects of pollution and contaminants and this reminds us of the need to preserve our unique, Canadian environment.

Under the $1.5 billion Oceans Protection Plan, the Government of Canada is making navigation safer by delivering modern and improved hydrography and charting in key areas. Today, the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport announced an investment of close to $20 million over five years to chart high-profile ports and near-shore areas in British Columbia.

This new investment will allow Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Canadian Hydrographic Service to enhance services and deliver improved and modern hydrography and charting in key areas of high traffic commercial ports and waterways to support safe and efficient navigation. The information will also give us a better understanding of the seabed type to help us protect our marine environments.

Canada is also committed to furthering the understanding of conventional and emerging contaminants in wastewater. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, Jonathan Wilkinson, announced today that the Government of Canada is investing $400,000 this year for a technical review of contaminants in wastewater to be conducted by Canadian Water Network. An expert panel, chaired by University of British Columbia’s Dr. Don Mavinic, will undertake the review. This initiative demonstrates Canada's commitment to cleaner water.

The Government of Canada will continue to invest in science to provide a cleaner environment and cleaner waterways.

Quotes

"This investment in hydrography and charting will improve navigational charts and access to dynamic hydrographic products in critical areas across the country with limited or out-of-date navigational information. This delivers on our promise to improve marine safety and efficiency as we continue to protect Canada's coastal habitats, ecosystems and marine species."

The Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport

"Canada is tackling issues that are important to the everyday lives of Canadians – from investigating harmful and emerging contaminants of concern in wastewater and exploring new technologies that may help reduce environmental risks to determining what resources can be usefully recovered from a treatment facility. The Government of Canada is committed to using science to inform decisions and to help deliver cleaner rivers, lakes and oceans for all Canadians."

Jonathan Wilkinson, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Quick Facts

• All vessels in Canadian waters must carry and use nautical charts. Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Canadian Hydrographic Service is responsible for gathering, managing, transforming and distributing bathymetric, hydrographic and nautical information into paper and electronic nautical charts.
• The Canadian Hydrographic Service is responsible for charting the world's longest coastline (243,792 kilometres) as well as 6.55 million square kilometres of continental shelf and territorial waters.
• Canadian Water Network's wastewater expert panel will produce a report on the information it gathers. The report is not a review of existing federal regulations and policies related to wastewater. The project will be completed by March 31, 2018.

Related Products

The Oceans Protection Plan
About the Canadian Hydrographic Service
Nautical Charts and Services
Canadian Water Network 
Backgrounder: Hydrography, Charting, and Wastewater Science

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Backgrounder

Hydrography and Charting, an initiative under the Oceans Protection Plan

The Government of Canada is investing close to $20 million over five years to chart high-profile ports and near shore areas in British Columbia. This will enhance services and deliver improved and modern hydrography and charting in key areas of high traffic commercial ports and waterways.

Investments into the hydrography and charting for safer navigation in British Columbia ports are funded through the $1.5 billion Oceans Protection Plan, which was announced in November 2016. The plan is creating a world-leading marine safety system that provides economic opportunities for Canadians today, while protecting our coastlines and clean water for generations to come.

This new investment will allow Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Canadian Hydrographic Service to increase hydrographic surveying activities, deliver dynamic information for water levels, tides, and currents, and more quickly produce high-resolution electronic navigation charts, navigational products and data for mariners.

The Canadian Hydrographic Service has the responsibility for charting the world's longest coastline as well as over six million square kilometres of continental shelf and territorial waters, including extensive inland waterways such as the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Over the coming years, nine more ports in British Columbia will be surveyed to deliver hydrographic dynamic e-navigation products in key areas such as Kitimat, and the Port of Vancouver in the portions of the Fraser River. Once complete, navigation in and around these ports will be safer and reduce the risk of accidents. This hydrographic information will also give us a better understanding of the seabed type, leading to scientific knowledge to help us protect our marine environments.

To date, surveys have been conducted in four British Columbia ports: Vancouver, Prince Rupert, Stewart and Port Alberni. This represents 38.8 square kilometres of data captured so far over 18 days.

Wastewater Science, an Environment and Climate Change Canada initiative

The Government of Canada is investing $400,000 for a technical review of contaminants in wastewater to be conducted by Canadian Water Network.

An expert panel, chaired by Dr. Don Mavinic, will undertake a review that will identify:

• the harmful conventional and emerging contaminants in wastewater, and the technologies for mitigating risk posed by those substances;
• resources that can be recovered from a wastewater treatment facility and methods for recovery; and
• rules and incentives in other jurisdictions for contaminant removal and resource recovery.

By volume, wastewater effluent is the largest source of pollution to surface water in Canada. Wastewater effluent may contain many pollutants and substances of concern, including suspended solids, pathogens, decaying organic wastes, nutrients, pharmaceuticals, and hundreds of chemicals.

The information from this review could be used to inform future policies, practices and investment decisions for all levels of government

SOURCE Transport Canada

Delphine Denis, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, Ottawa, 613-991-0700; [email protected], Media Relations, Transport Canada, Ottawa, 613-993-0055, [email protected]; Laura Gareau, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 613-992-3474, [email protected]; Media Relations, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 613-990-7537, [email protected]; Marie-Pascale Des Rosiers, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, 613-462-5473, [email protected]; Media Relations, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 819-938-3338 or 1-844-836-7799 (toll free), [email protected]