Good morning, Mr. Chair.
Committee members, thank you very much for the opportunity to participate in your study on marine cargo container spills this morning.
To open, I would like to provide a brief overview of the current state of play related to marine cargo loss in Canada, touching in particular on the recent case of the Zim Kingston.
As you know, global marine shipping trends continue to evolve. We're seeing much larger ships carrying enormous volumes of diverse cargo, everything from everyday household items and food products to petroleum and other fuels. For example, in May 2021, the largest container ship ever to call on North America's east coast berthed in the port of Halifax; the Marco Polo is capable of holding over 16,000 shipping containers.
These vessels and their cargo are critical to the global supply chains on which we depend for the necessities of everyday life and are essential to continuing to grow the Canadian economy. However, the transiting of these large vessels and their cargo across oceans and in and out of Canadian waters is not without risk. Accidents happen, and cargo can be lost.
We experienced this first-hand last October when the Zim Kingston lost 109 containers overboard off the coast of Vancouver Island as a result of an extreme weather event. As a result of significant investments made by the government through the oceans protection plan since 2017, the Coast Guard was well-positioned to respond quickly and effectively to this incident.
For example, the Planning for Integrated Environmental Response initiative developed area response plans that were instrumental in quickly notifying indigenous and coastal communities, as well as other response partners, of the incident.
In addition, the implementation of a 24/7 posture for Coast Guard's Regional Operations Centres and the National Command Centre played a critical role in coordinating our operational response throughout the incident.
Lastly, investments in drift protection and near‑shore modelling enabled Coast Guard to track the trajectory of lost cargo containers and predict locations where containers and their contents could come ashore.
These are just a few of the oceans protection plan investments that have yielded substantial benefit in improving marine safety and protecting the marine environment, and have paid significant dividends in responding to the Zim Kingston, whose lost containers remain top of mind for the Coast Guard.
Under the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act, another initiative of the oceans protection plan, the cleanup of lost cargo is the responsibility of the vessel owner. The Coast Guard's responsibility is to ensure that the owner takes the appropriate measures to address the lost cargo.
Following the Zim Kingston's container spill, the Coast Guard monitored and supported beach clean‑up operations, and we continue to hold the vessel owner accountable. At the Coast Guard's request, the vessel owner conducted a sonar scan of Constance Bank Anchorage. Planning is under way for a second scan in the Cape Flattery area.
Additionally, the Coast Guard has requested the vessel owner conduct an environmental risk assessment to determine the possible impacts the lost containers may have on the marine environment. We continue to keep partners and stakeholders engaged and up‑to‑date.
The Zim Kingston incident was a complex response operation that highlighted the many challenges of marine container spills. We are proud of the fast, effective, collaborative and sustained response effort put forward by our Coast Guard crews and very many response partners at multiple levels to successfully and safely resolve this complex incident.
We learned an awful lot from the incident of the Zim Kingston, and we will continue to draw lessons for years to come.
Thank you very much, Chair. I look forward to your questions.