Our mission
The Coalition for responsible and sustainable Navigation (hereby called Coalition Navigation) was created with the aim of ensuring that legislation regarding the use of motor boats takes into account ecosystem protection of water bodies, more specifically waterways, in Canada.
Objective
The Coalition Navigation wants the Canadian government to commit to the adoption and implementation of legislations based on sound scientific knowledge in order to protect the quality of our water bodies as well as fund valid and reliable scientific research to fill the knowledge gap to do so.
Get Involved
The Coalition Navigation needs your support to put pressure on the government to protect our water bodies, and especially our waterways. We are seeking your testimonies regarding approaches or practices (policies, regulations, etc.) that have been developed or adopted here in Canada or elsewhere to protect water bodies. Any donations received contribute greatly to the spread of our message across Canadian provinces and to the Canadian government.
Background
Scientific research has demonstrated that the use of motor boats on our water bodies can have a negative impact on the environment especially on the quality of water as well as on fauna and flora (Asplund, 2000; Hansen et al., 2019; Venohr et al. 2018). However, the applicable regulation – The Canada Shipping Act (Canada Shipping Act, S.C. 2001, c.26) is outdated and powerless in the face of environmental protection. The Government of Canada (through its department of transport – Transport Canada – and supported by the department of Fisheries and Oceans) must act urgently. It is unacceptable that our living environments are deteriorating at an accelerated pace and such, without vigorous intervention by our government.
In an effort to alleviate these problems, local residents’ associations have adopted voluntary codes of conduct. Unfortunately, these have no legal value. In addition, they often generate polarized debates and social conflicts that municipalities are powerless to manage.
The Coalition Navigation is calling on the Government of Canada to urgently change its legislation on the use of motor boats to help protect our ecosystems. This legislation must be based on reliable scientific expertise regarding the impact of these boats on the environment and on effective solutions to prevent their harmful impacts.