Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.
The Government of Canada is committed to creating a robust marine safety system to continue providing economic opportunities for Canadians today, while protecting our waterways and coasts for future generations. Canada's marine transportation sector and its associated supply chains are vital to maintaining our growth and collective prosperity.
Anchorages help bolster marine safety in our coastal waterways in and around our busiest ports. These anchorages are a key part of our marine safety system, ensuring that Canadian resources have uninterrupted access to global markets.
The government recognizes that with the steady increase in maritime trade we have seen in the past decade, some geographical areas have experienced additional impacts. The Port of Vancouver and the southern Gulf Islands are two areas that have seen an increase in vessel transits and, consequently, an increased use of anchorages in the area.
The government is well aware of the concerns expressed by local communities and indigenous groups regarding these anchorage sites. Engagement with indigenous and coastal communities, as well as with marine industry stakeholders, is a key component of the oceans protection plan and Transport Canada's approach to advance the issue of anchorages in this region.
I want to assure my colleagues that government representatives communicated with the stakeholders and the indigenous and coastal communities in a variety of ways and asked for feedback on this issue. The comments they received have brought to light a certain number of important social and environmental considerations that are now being used to develop an anchorage management framework for the future.
Transport Canada's vision for anchorage management is focused on reducing anchorage use and transits by commercial vessels and ensuring, whether through incentives or deterrents, that these vessels adhere to a code of conduct when they are at anchor in order to minimize the impact on the marine environment and nearby communities.
In accordance with that vision, officials are also examining active traffic management measures to optimize supply chain efficiency and in turn reduce the use of ships and the time spent at anchor.
Experience gained from the interim protocol for the use of southern B.C. anchorages will continue to serve as the basis for the development of a new protocol. Officials are working closely with the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority under this protocol to handle complaints from the public.
Ultimately, our goal is to enable safe, efficient commercial shipping that benefits all Canadians while minimizing the impact on the marine environment and surrounding communities.