Thank you for your introduction, Mr. Chairman, and for inviting me to address the committee today about some elements of Canada's Arctic foreign policy relating to marine transportation.
As you know, the north is undergoing rapid change and a warming climate is providing unprecedented access to the region's resources. This presents significant opportunities for northerners to benefit from the growing global demand for natural resources. However, the increased development of the north will also bring about economic, social, and environmental change, as you all are well aware, of course.
Development is expected to result in increased economic activity and a new demand for construction of infrastructure, particularly maritime infrastructure.
With so much potential change, we must look at ways to continue to enable safe, secure, efficient and environmentally responsible marine transportation.
In this way, we can realistically hope to balance the effects of development with maintaining a robust level of environmental protection. One of the ways Transport Canada can do this is providing regulatory stability in order for industry operating in or near Canadian Arctic waters to make decisions with a degree of confidence.
In particular, we will continue to enforce the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, as well as the regulatory requirements under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001. To that end we will monitor vessels for compliance with our regulations and confirm that they are fit to operate safely in our waters. In addition, under the new Navigation Protection Act, harbours and bays in the Arctic will remain under Transport Canada oversight.
As shipping technology and practices change over time and international conventions are adopted, we compare them to our regulatory regime to identify opportunities, gaps, or conflicts. If any are found, the appropriate measures will be taken, potentially including seeking authority to amend legislation.
Another step we can take is identifying potential strategic marine transportation corridors in the north. Transport Canada is currently examining this concept with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
This approach would tactically direct some federal resources to help provide sufficient and sustainable levels of marine services in the North. In the longer term, it would also focus strategic planning and prioritize future investment.
Our upcoming chairmanship of the Arctic Council offers another opportunity to protect the North. In recent years, the Council’s role has shifted from information sharing and research to policy making and coordination of Arctic State activities.
This new focus provides an excellent opportunity for Canada to promote measures such as an effective international regulatory regime for vessels operating in the Arctic. Through our chairmanship we propose to encourage our Arctic Council partners to speak at the International Maritime Organization with a unified voice and to build consensus about the need for a strong international regime.
At the same time, we are continuing our efforts at the IMO to develop a mandatory polar code. A mandatory code would help protect the fragile Arctic environment by setting more stringent international standards for safety and pollution prevention in polar waters.
We are proposing to incorporate into the code many elements of our own regime for Arctic shipping that has been so successful for over 40 years. We will also cooperate with other federal departments, as well as the territorial governments, northern communities and our international partners, especially the United States, about appropriate standards for shipping in this unique area.
Mr. Chairman, climate change and global demand for resources are changing the lives of northerners. This requires marine shipping that is efficient, safe, and environmentally sound. Our existing regulatory regime is robust and we are now taking steps that we expect will improve standards for Arctic shipping internationally.
Thank you.