Nothing raises the ire of Squamish boater and conservationist John Buchanan more than debris in Howe Sound from abandoned boats.
Off the top of his head, he can list 20 vessels in Howe Sound that are either sunk, sinking or broken apart and floating on the water’s surface.
On June 10, Buchanan pounded out a terse email to provincial and federal environment ministries about debris and abandoned boats scattered around Darrell Bay.
“The derelict boat situation at Darrell Bay continues to develop with no apparent cleanup response from any level of government, or responsible party,” Buchanan wrote in an email also forwarded to the District of Squamish and The Chief.
“I again appeal to both levels of government to hire a barge with a crane to dispose of the remains of both the Salten and this latest boat on shore that has blown apart.”
The Salten, a 1947 wooden fishing vessel, sank about a year ago.
It is registered with Transport Canada to Squamish resident Neil Finley. Finley told The Chief his boat was one of those ordered moved last year as part of a cleanup project spearheaded by the developers behind the proposed Waterfront Landing housing development.
He told The Chief a member of the Coast Guard told him that because the Salten didn’t have any fuel or oil in it, it could remain below the water.
A representative from the Coast Guard, however, told The Chief that removal or salvage of the Salten is the owner’s responsibility.
“At no time did the Canadian Coast Guard suggest that the vessel should remain where it is,” said Michelle Imbeau, communications with the organization. Imbeau said that the coast guard’s mandate relates to the release of hydrocarbons into local water.
“Should the situation escalate and the Salten begins to release hydrocarbons, the Canadian Coast Guard Environmental Response personnel are ready to respond.”
A representative for Transport Canada said the federal government is aware of several abandoned vessels in the Darrell Bay area.
“We have been in discussions with the Province of British Columbia to advise them that the removal of these vessels may be eligible for funding under the recently announced Abandoned Boats Program,” said the media spokesperson in an email to The Chief.
“The new Abandoned Boats Program, announced last month, provides funding to assist communities with the removal and disposal of the highest priority abandoned or wrecked small boats posing a hazard in Canadian waters, thereby supporting the preservation and restoration of Canada’s marine ecosystems.”
The program requires the province or the municipality to clean up the debris or raise the abandoned vessel first and then apply for funding to cover the expenses.
The federal government will reimburse up to $5,000 per boat removal assessment and $50,000 per boat removal and disposal.
Acting Mayor Jason Blackman-Wulff said council and the District of Squamish have been concerned with this issue for some time and are looking for solutions. While the federal funding program is promising; it is a cost-sharing agreement that requires the District pay 25 per cent of the cost for removal and disposal.
Because the agreement is so new, its share of costs was not included in the 2017 District of Squamish budget, Blackman-Wulff said.
“We don’t have anything for this year, but obviously for next year we are going to have to take a look at it,” he said. “We are also going to have to take a look at what it actually means for responsibility, in terms of jurisdiction.”
Meanwhile the debris on the surface and bottom of Howe Sound continue to spread, which frustrates Buchanan. After storms, vessels that were derelict often end up torn apart or sunk.
“Now what do you have? You have this garbage that is strewn up and down the coastline so when they eventually do come in – if they ever do – the recovery effort is a bit in vain,” he said. “Great that they announced the small boat recovery fund, but there is such a time lag.”
