Canadian Coast Guard Compliance Framework

This Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) Compliance Framework is a document that outlines the principles adopted by the Monitoring and Compliance Program toward compliance and enforcement, and program's objectives, activities and tools. It sets out an overview of roles and responsibilities, guiding principles, compliance promotion, monitoring, and enforcement. The document also outlines the CCG's expectations about what is required of owners under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (CSA) or the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act (WAHVA).

The Monitoring and Compliance Program aims to establish national consistency that is supported by departmental policies. This policy framework aims to provide a consistent, fair, predictable and transparent process.

This document is intended to provide guidance only. It is not a substitute for the CSA or WAHVA. In the event of an inconsistency between this document and the acts, the statute prevails. This policy framework will be reviewed as necessary to ensure consistent interpretation and that it continues to meet the needs of interested parties.

Note: for the purposes of this document, the term "owner" is used throughout, however, it should be interpreted to include any other responsible parties that may be held liable under the CSA and the WAHVA, depending on the applicable provisions. For instance, this could include: owners, authorized representatives, persons in charge, masters of vessels, corporations, non-compliant parties, and any person who might be issued a direction.

Vision

The vision of the CCG Monitoring and Compliance Program is to reduce the occurrence and potential risk of pollution discharges from vessels or facilities under the CSA, and mitigate the risks posed by hazardous vessels and wrecks in Canadian waters under the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act (WAHVA).

This is achieved through promotion of compliance and proactive enforcement measures.

Through compliance promotion, the program helps owners be aware of, access, understand, and comply with their responsibilities under the law.

The aim of the program is to increase accountability of owners according to the "polluter pays" principle. This is accomplished through the fair and active administration of the CSA and WAHVA with a focused effort on maintaining the liability and responsibility of vessel owners to reduce threats of pollutants and hazards to the marine environment, coastlines, shorelines, infrastructure, health, safety, and the economic interests of Canadians.

Roles and responsibilities

The roles and responsibilities of the CCG

The Monitoring and Compliance Program is mandated to implement, monitor and ensure compliance and take enforcement actions as per the legislated mandate of the CCG outlined in theCSAand WAHVA.

The CSA Part 8 gives the Minister of National Defence responsibilities, powers and obligations with respect to pollution response. WAHVAoutlinesowners' liabilities with regard to their vessels when they pose a hazard, including at the end of their life, and sets out the Minister of Transport and Minister of National Defence powers to address problematic vessels.

The CCG Monitoring and Compliance Program is responsible for the following:

Compliance promotion to increase awareness, understanding and compliance with the law through education, providing access to information and outreach;
Working closely with owners to address problem vessels;
Verifying compliance and inspections under the CSA and WAHVA;
Taking necessary enforcement action to bring owners into compliance with the law including using administrative monetary penalties (AMP) or initiating court proceedings under the applicable legislation;
Ensuring owners are held liable for a vessel, oil handling facility, or hazardous and noxious substances facility for the discharge or threat of discharge of a pollutant under the CSA;
Ensuring that vessel owners are held liable for vessels that represent any form of hazard — be it environmental, safety and security-based, or socio-economic—within Canada's exclusive economic zone and as defined under WAHVA;
Formalizing policy and operational requirements that will allow the CCG to verify compliance and take the necessary enforcement actions under its legislated mandate to hold vessel owners accountable in Canadian waters;
Contributing to the socio-economic interests of the Canadian public while protecting physical infrastructure and the marine environment; and
Providing nationwide oversight of cost recovery processes and providing support to cost recovery efforts by regions.

Responsibilities under WAHVA

WAHVA seeks to reduce and prevent cases of wrecked, abandoned, or hazardous vessels through provisions that prohibit owners' irresponsible behavior that may be harmful to Canada's marine environment, and coastal and shoreline communities.

Owners under WAHVA must:

Not interfere with inspections or otherwise obstruct those performing their powers, duties or functions under WAHVA, including providing false or misleading information;
Provide information to a Marine Communications Traffic Service (MCTS) Officer if involved in a maritime casualty that resulted in a wreck;
Mark the wreck where the vessel is located, if involved in a maritime casualty that resulted in a hazardous wreck;
Comply with directions of the Minister of National Defence to locate, mark or remove a hazardous wreck resulting from a maritime casualty or comply with any directions to address a hazardous vessel;
Comply with directions of the Minister of National Defence to address a dilapidated vessel;
Adhere to the inspection authorities of the Minister of National Defence or enforcement officers, which could include: producing documents, providing information, establishing identity, and putting anything into operation or ceasing its operation (such as for example: machinery or equipment on a vessel);
Comply with Minister of National Defence directions within an emergency zone, including reporting its position; and
Comply with Minister of National Defence and enforcement officer directions to stop, provide information, proceed through and or out of waters by a specified route or remain outside those waters.

Responsibilities under the CSA

The CSA Part 8 focuses on pollution prevention and response, and the authority for the CCG to respond to ship-source marine pollution spills, including oil pollution. The ship-source marine pollution response regime established under the CSA is complemented by the liability and compensation regime established under the Marine Liability Act, on which the CCG relies to recover its response operational costs from ship owners.

Owners under the CSA must:

Comply with the directions of pollution response officers to:
- provide information, including information and documents required on site;
- stop, proceed through or out of waters by a specified route, or remain outside those waters;
- provide reasonable assistance or put into operation or cease operating machinery or equipment; and
- follow directions within an emergency zone, including reporting its position.
Comply with any directions of the Minister of National Defence, such as:
- taking the measures considered necessary to repair, remedy, minimize or prevent pollution damage from a vessel or facility.

As stated above, this list is non-exhaustive and only sets out a general overview of roles and responsibilities under WAHVA and the CSA.

Guiding principles

The Monitoring and Compliance Program is guided by the following principles:

Accountability and consistency: The CCG is accountable to Parliament and to Canadians through the Minister of National Defence to ensure that any compliance and enforcement action is taken in accordance with statutory authorities and duties. For instance, when engaging with owners, actions must be consistent with:
- The CCG's mandate, values, legal and operational frameworks; and
- Any applicable international requirements.
Impartiality and integrity: The CCG will ensure that legislation is applied in a fair, consistent and impartial manner. This means that compliance and enforcement actions are made in ways that are reasonable, professional, unbiased and unprejudiced. CCG staff act with impartiality and integrity, as set out in the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Sector.
Collaboration and transparency: The CCG will communicate with owners and exercise discretion to choose the appropriate level of engagement corresponding to the degree of collaboration of the owner. The CCG aims for transparency, including providing clear communication about responsibilities and statutory requirements, next steps, and potential consequences of non-compliance. Under WAHVA, the CCG publicly reports any fines issued to vessel owners on our website.
Results-based and risk-informed: The CCG will take measures that will serve the public interest, in light of the context and specific circumstances of the case. Enforcement decisions take into account a number of factors and is informed by data and risk. Immediate, imminent or predictable harm reduction is addressed as the first priority before any enforcement activities.
Polluter-pay principle: The principle that those who produce pollution should be held responsible for the consequences of their actions. Those that are responsible for pollution should pay the costs to repair, remedy, minimize or prevent pollution or hazards posed by vessels.

Shared governance

The Monitoring and Compliance Program will work collaboratively with owners, federal departments, and Indigenous and coastal communities to target cases that will have impactful outcomes from a compliance and enforcement perspective.

As an example, the CCG may seek the expertise of partners such as Transport Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada or Environment and Climate Change Canada to make an accurate determination.

Also, if there are issues with environmental integrity and sustainability because of a problem vessel, this may implicate multiple organizations from different orders of government (federal, provincial and local).

Collaborative graduated enforcement approach

The CCG Monitoring and Compliance Program applies a collaborative graduated enforcement approach. The intent is not to punish, but to promote owner responsibility, including the proper life-cycle management of their vessels. The CCG will choose the actions, tools and level of intervention most appropriate for the situation. A guiding principle of the collaborative graduated enforcement approach is that the CCG will choose the appropriate level of engagement corresponding to the degree of collaboration of the owner. The CCG will issue a fine if other avenues have not led to compliance.

Visual representation of the CCG collaborative graduated enforcement approach

Figure 1: A visual representation of the collaborative graduated enforcement approach.

Text description of Figure 1: A visual representation of the collaborative graduated enforcement approach.

This diagram provides a visual representation of the collaborative graduated enforcement approach, including:

compliance promotion;
compliance monitoring and verification
enforcement;
following up on compliance and enforcement actions; and
cost recovery.

A. Compliance promotion

Compliance promotion includes education, stewardship and stakeholder engagement. For instance, the CCG:

engages and educates vessel owners related to their legal obligations;
engages with vessel owners directly to notify and advise them about their obligations;
provides public notices of enforcement actions; and
performs outreach to federal, Indigenous, and local partners and stakeholders to promote compliance.

B. Compliance monitoring and verification

Compliance monitoring includes managing case files, conducting inspections and reviewing documentation, and requesting, collecting and analyzing evidence to verify compliance.

Managing a case file includes verification of the identity of the owner. If the owner is known, the CCG will attempt to work with the party to address the problem vessel.

If/when the owner is identified, the CCG will assume that the majority of owners will accept responsibility for their problem vessels. This is an aspect of the polluter pays principle. The CCG will seek to collaborate with owners and inform them of potential next steps and authorities that will be used. It is also incumbent upon the owner to keep the CCG apprised of their intentions and progress with a maritime incident or a problem vessel.

Where applicable, the CCG may notify owners to inform them that their vessel is discharging a pollutant, may be discharging a pollutant, or that it poses or may pose a hazard. The CCG will encourage owners to remediate or mitigate the hazard, advising them of their responsibilities. The CCG uses a risk assessment tool to assess risk posed by individual vessels or wrecks in a consistent way.

These notices may be deemed appropriate where a risk assessment has been applied and the hazard is not considered imminent. Risks can include: environmental risks, health and safety risks, and socio-economic risks to communities.

The CCG may follow up on notifications to monitor and verify compliance.

Directions

When necessary, in the event of a hazardous pollution incident or a wreck, the CCG may issue directions (also known as orders) to compel the owner to take action. For instance, the CCG may consider:

Whether the owner has communicated their intentions;
Whether the owner is taking steps towards mitigation or remediation;
Whether the owner has a history of non-compliance with the CCG;
The level of risk that the vessel poses; and
Imminence of the threat.

The CCG will also consider a reasonable time frame for the owner to comply.

Depending on the nature of the direction issued, the CCG can still monitor the progress of the owner. Once the deadline has passed for complying with the direction, the CCG may perform an inspection or investigation. The result of this action will help determine if a sanction is required, including an AMP.

In the event that the owner is unknown or deceased, or if they are unable to, or refuse to address the incident or hazard, the CCG (Marine Environmental and Hazards Response Program) has the authority to take direct measures to address it. The CCG will look to recover the costs of its response.

C. Enforcement

Failure to comply with WAHVA or the CSA may lead to the issuance of a Notice of Violation with AMPs, or to a recommendation for prosecution as an offence, depending on the applicable provision.

When considering enforcement actions to address non-compliance, the CCG may consider whether the enforcement will:

Prevent future hazards;
Promote immediate compliance (if any); and
Promote future compliance (if applicable).

Potential penalties under the law

Under WAHVA, the CCG can issue AMPs of up to $50,000 for individuals and $250,000 for any other person or vessel for serious violations. "Any other person" can include, for instance, companies or corporations. For minor violations, the CCG can issue penalties of up to $5,000 for individuals and $25,000 for any other person or vessel.

Under WAHVA, regulatory offence prosecution could result in a maximum fine of $1 million for individuals, and/or up to three years of jail, and a maximum fine of $6 million for companies or corporations.

Under the CSA, regulatory offence prosecution could result in a maximum fine of $1 million for persons or vessels, and/or up to 18 months of jail.

Administrative monetary penalties

AMPs are a key tool of CCG's Monitoring and Compliance Program. They are an intermediary tool of compliance by providing an alternative to the judicial process for certain violations. AMPs are imposed in order to compensate for harm done, rather than as a means of punishing a wrongful activity. The intent is to provide an effective deterrent against repeating any undesirable activity and to encourage vessel owners to comply with legislation.

For instance, an enforcement officer may issue a Notice of Violation with an AMP to the offending party where they have failed to comply with a direction. This could include, for example, the failure to comply with a direction to take the measures the Minister considers necessary to prevent, mitigate or eliminate the hazard posed by a vessel or a wreck (section 36(c) of WAHVA).

This is a serious violation and therefore would be subject to an AMP of up to $50,000 for individuals and $250,000 for any other person or vessel.

When issuing an AMP under WAHVA, the calculation is based upon the following:

Baseline penalty + Aggravating factors – Mitigating factors.

Aggravating factors can increase the total penalty amount. These may include, for instance:

Compliance history: if, within the past five years, the violator has been subject to an enforcement action under WAHVA.
Economic benefit from the non-compliance: if the violator violated a provision of the WAHVA for purposes of financial gain or to gain a financial advantage. This can include advantages gained from avoiding the costs of addressing the problem vessel.

Mitigating factors can reduce the total penalty amount. These may include, for instance:

Mitigation of harm: has the violator taken steps to come into compliance or has made reasonable efforts to prevent, mitigate or eliminate the hazard.
The level of cooperation of the owner, including providing reasonable assistance and cooperation.

The notice of violation may not be issued more than two years after the CCG becomes aware of the violation.

Under WAHVA, non-compliance that continues for multiple days can be treated as a new violation for each day the non-compliance remains a violation under the Act. Treatment of a continuing violation will consider the facts relating to the violation and respect the purpose of the AMP, which is to promote compliance and not punish. Violations will be treated on a case-by-case basis and not all violations should be enforced as continuing.

Any payment received will go to the future Vessel Remediation Fund (VRF), it does not return to the CCG. VRF is a vessel owner financed long-term remediation fund that will enable the government to take proactive measures for high priority vessels, while alleviating pressure on taxpayers. It will also fund preventative measures to help reduce new cases of problem vessels going forward.

D. Following up on compliance and enforcement actions

The CCG will also follow up to confirm that measures have been taken, such as vessel mitigation and remediation by the owner, and ensuring that AMPs are paid. Where the owner is compliant with the direction and mitigation is underway, the CCG monitors the situation.

E. Cost recovery

The Monitoring and Compliance Program offers oversight of cost recovery processes for the Marine Environmental and Hazards Response Program including: coordinating, monitoring and documenting claims, managing the acceptance of claims, and overseeing communications related to cost recovery.

If the CCG takes measures to address the pollution threat and/or hazards posed by a vessel, the aim of the Monitoring and Compliance Program is to ensure that costs arising from the deployment of CCG assets and personnel are recovered, in accordance with the polluter pays principle. In order to cost recover, the CCG will use all legislative and policy authorities available, including the Ship Source Oil Pollution Fund.

Reporting hazards and marine pollution

The CCG also relies upon owners, partners and stakeholders to report discharges of pollution and problem vessels to so that the CCG can track and assess them for an appropriate response.

How to report a wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessel

Anyone who finds a wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessel can report it directly to the CCG through the 24/7 Regional Operation Centers.

The CCG maintains an inventory of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels, along with a risk assessment methodology to understand the extent of the issues and prioritizes response for the highest-risk vessels.

How to report marine pollution

Vessels and oil handling facility operators must report all pollution or threats of pollution. Reports must follow Transport Canada's Guidelines for Reporting Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods, Harmful Substances and / or Marine Pollutants. Report an incident by calling your nearest Canadian Coast Guard office. You may also report marine pollution incidents by contacting a MCTS centre on VHF channel 16. All numbers are open 24 hours a day.

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2026-01-07

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Canadian Coast Guard Compliance Framework

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