Minister of Transport announces funding for new technologies to reduce underwater noise from marine vessels

From: Transport Canada

News release

August 11, 2022                    Ottawa                    Transport Canada

Underwater noise from boats can negatively impact the marine environment and vulnerable marine mammals— including species like the endangered Southern Resident killer whales. That is why the Government of Canada is investing in new technologies that will help reduce underwater noise from vessels on Canada’s waters.

Today, the Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced more than $3.1 million for 22 projects to help reduce the impact of underwater vessel noise.  

These projects include:

  • Workshops to identify safe and practical approaches to reducing underwater noise;
  • developing a tool available to all members of the marine industry to predict and implement effective quiet designs into new vessel being built;
  • developing new, real-time tools to track underwater noise released by marine vessels; and
  • developing a tool to detect marine mammals and alert nearby vessels.

Projects are funded through Transport Canada’s Quiet Vessel Initiative and builds on previous actions taken to keep the marine ecosystem safe, such as the Whales Initiative. As part of the Government of Canada’s commitment to keep marine mammals safe, the Quiet Vessels Initiative will help protect the marine environment more than ever before.

Quotes

“Our government is committed to keeping our marine ecosystems safe, and this investment will help do just that. The Quiet Vessel Initiative will advance new technologies to help reduce the impacts of noise caused by humans on marine mammals, like the vulnerable Southern Resident killer whale. Together with industry and academia, we will continue to take concrete steps to protect our endangered marine mammals and keep our waters safe.”  

The Honourable Omar Alghabra
Minister of Transport

Quick facts

  • The Quiet Vessel Initiative was announced on June 30, 2021 and is one of eight accommodation measures developed to address the concerns of Indigenous communities regarding the Trans Mountain Expansion Project.

  • Projects funded through the Quiet Vessel Initiative will help generate the technical evidence needed to support Canada’s noise management measures in the Salish Sea and elsewhere in Canada. They will also provide guidance to industry, academia, and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to influence future quiet vessel design standards and adoption.

Associated links

Contacts

Laurel Lennox
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Omar Alghabra
Minister of Transport, Ottawa
Laurel.Lennox@tc.gc.ca

Media Relations
Transport Canada, Ottawa
613-993-0055
media@tc.gc.ca

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