With respect to the recent oil spill disaster off the north-western coast of Spain, and the sinking of the oil tanker Prestige: a ) what emergency procedures does the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) have in place to deal with such a disaster off a Canadian coast; b ) would DFO lead the response to such a disaster off the Canadian coast; c ) would the responsibilities be shared with other departments and if yes, which ones; d ) does DFO have the resources available today to deal with an oil spill of any capacity off the coasts of Canada; (i) if yes, what are these resources; (ii) if no, is the department working to secure the necessary resources and when will they be available?
In the House of Commons on January 27th, 2003. See this statement in context.