Hazardous vessels

Wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels, also known as problem vessels, pose serious safety, environmental, and economic concerns. The Canadian Coast Guard is the lead agency in addressing hazardous vessels and is part of the Government of Canada's national strategy to address this problem. We work closely with Transport Canada who is the lead for non-hazardous wrecked and abandoned vessels.

What is a wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessel

A vessel is considered hazardous if it could cause harm to:

• human health, safety, or well-being
• the environment
• economic interests
• infrastructure

A vessel could be considered wrecked if it, or one of its parts, is:

• adrift
• stranded or grounded
• fully or partially submerged

This includes cargo, stores, equipment, or other items that were onboard the vessel.

A vessel is considered abandoned, if either:

• the owner can't be located after reasonable efforts are taken to find them, or
• vessel has been left unattended for 2 or more years

Vessel assessment

Problem vessels are reported to the Canadian Coast Guard. We review and assess each one to determine its level of risk.
Risks include:

• the threat of pollution
• hazards to navigation, the economy, the environment, the public, and/or infrastructure
• danger to public safety

If a vessel pollutes or is a risk to imminently pollute the environment, it is prioritized and immediately addressed.
Some of the factors we consider when assessing problem vessels are:

• location: is the vessel impeding navigation or threatening sensitive marine habitats or species at risk
• cargo: is there dangerous or toxic cargo onboard
• pollutants: is there a danger of fuel leaking into the environment
• condition: is the vessel partially or fully submerged and is it deteriorating or hazardous to navigation
  • economy: is the vessel damaging the local economy by taking up space in a harbour or blocking navigation channels or damaging marine infrastructure such as wharves and buoys, if not properly secured
• fisheries and species at risk: is the vessel harmful to:
  • fisheries:
    • food, social and ceremonial
    • commercial
    • recreational
  • aquaculture
  • key habitats
  • important spawning grounds
  • migration routes for vulnerable species
• Indigenous peoples: is the vessel located in Indigenous territories and impacting Indigenous rights and community well-being
• safety: is the vessel:
  • unsecured and unmonitored, posing a high risk to the public if they attempt to board it
• close to sources of drinking water, risking contamination

Our approach to assessing risks posed by vessels was developed in consultation with partners including:

• Indigenous groups
• coastal communities
• industry stakeholders

Working with owners

The owner is responsible for addressing any pollution or hazards posed by their vessel. Working with owners, the Canadian Coast Guard can make sure a problem vessel is addressed by:

• cleaning up a spill or mitigating hazards
• removing and disposing of the vessel, where necessary

If the owner of the vessel is unknown or if the owner does not comply with a direction to address the hazards or the pollution, the Canadian Coast Guard will take action to address any threats posed by the vessel.

Our priority is to mitigate the risk posed by hazardous vessels rather than removing all problem vessels. There are many reasons why we might not remove a vessel. For example, disturbing it could cause more damage to the marine environment than leaving it in place.

Related links

• Transport Canada's Abandoned Boats Program
• National Inventory of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels
• Small Craft Harbours Abandoned and Wrecked Vessels Removal Program
• Parks Canada's Guidelines for Evaluating Shipwrecks of National Historic Significance in Canada