Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (S.C. 2001, c. 26)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Canada Shipping Act, 2001.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

2 The definitions in this section apply in this Act.

adjudicator

adjudicator[Repealed, 2001, c. 29, s. 72]

authorized representative

authorized representative means

• (a) in respect of a Canadian vessel, the person referred to in subsection 14(1);

• (b) in respect of a fleet registered under Part 2, the person referred to in subsection 75.03(5); and

• (c) in respect of a foreign vessel, the master. (représentant autorisé)

bare-boat charter

bare-boat charter means a vessel charter agreement under which the charterer has complete possession and control of the vessel, including the right to appoint its master and crew. (affrètement coque nue)

Canadian maritime document

Canadian maritime document means a licence, permit, certificate or other document that is issued by the Minister of Transport under Part 1 (General), 3 (Personnel), 4 (Safety), 9 (Pollution Prevention — Department of Transport) or 11 (Enforcement — Department of Transport) to verify that the person to whom or vessel to which it is issued has met requirements under that Part. (document maritime canadien)

Canadian vessel

Canadian vessel means a vessel that is registered or listed under Part 2 (Registration, Listing and Recording) or that is exempted under the regulations from the registration requirement in subsection 46(1). (bâtiment canadien)

foreign vessel

foreign vessel means a vessel that is not a Canadian vessel or a pleasure craft. (bâtiment étranger)

government vessel

government vessel means a vessel that is owned by and is in the service of Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province or that is in the exclusive possession of Her Majesty in that right. (bâtiment d’État)

gross tonnage

gross tonnage means the volume of a vessel as determined by a tonnage measurer or calculated in accordance with the regulations made under paragraph 77(h). (jauge brute)

hazardous and noxious substances handling facility

hazardous and noxious substances handling facility means a facility that is used or that will be used in the loading or unloading of hazardous and noxious substances to or from vessels. (installation de manutention de substances nocives et potentiellement dangereuses)

master

master means the person in command and charge of a vessel. It does not include a licensed pilot, within the meaning of section 1.1 of the Pilotage Act, while the pilot is performing pilotage duties under that Act. (capitaine)

oil handling facility

oil handling facility means a facility, including an oil terminal, that is used or that will be used in the loading or unloading of petroleum in any form, including crude oil, fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse and refined products, to or from vessels. (installation de manutention d’hydrocarbures)

passenger

passenger means a person carried on a vessel by the owner or operator, other than

• (a) a person carried on a Safety Convention vessel who is

  • (i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or

  • (ii) under one year of age;

• (b) a person carried on a vessel that is not a Safety Convention vessel who is

  • (i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or

  • (ii) a guest on board the vessel, if the vessel is used exclusively for pleasure and the guest is carried on it without remuneration or any object of profit;

• (c) a person carried on a vessel in pursuance of the obligation on the master to carry shipwrecked, distressed or other persons or by reason of any circumstances that neither the master nor the owner could have prevented; or

• (d) a person of a prescribed class. (passager)

pleasure craft

pleasure craft means a vessel that is used for pleasure and does not carry passengers, and includes a vessel of a prescribed class. (embarcation de plaisance)

port authority

port authority has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the Canada Marine Act. (administration portuaire)

prescribed

prescribed means prescribed by regulations made by the Governor in Council. (Version anglaise seulement)

qualified person

qualified person means

• (a) a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act; or

• (b) a corporation incorporated under the laws of Canada or a province. (personne qualifiée)

Register

Register means the Canadian Register of Vessels established under section 43. (Registre)

Safety Convention vessel

Safety Convention vessel means a vessel in respect of which the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, listed in Schedule 1, applies. (bâtiment assujetti à la Convention sur la sécurité)

Tribunal

Tribunal means the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada established by subsection 2(1) of the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Act. (Tribunal)

vessel

vessel means a boat, ship or craft designed, used or capable of being used solely or partly for navigation in, on, through or immediately above water, without regard to method or lack of propulsion, and includes such a vessel that is under construction. It does not include a floating object of a prescribed class. (bâtiment)

wages

wages includes emoluments. (gages)

Marginal note:Descriptive cross-references

3 If, in any provision of this Act, a reference to another provision of this Act is followed by words in parentheses that are or purport to be descriptive of the subject-matter of the provision referred to, those words form no part of the provision in which they occur but are inserted for convenience of reference only.

Marginal note:Regulations

4 The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, make regulations prescribing anything that may be prescribed under section 2.

PART 1General

Her Majesty

Marginal note:Binding on Her Majesty

5 Except as otherwise provided, this Act is binding on Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province.

Objectives

Marginal note:Objectives of Act

6 The objectives of this Act are to

• (a) protect the health and well-being of individuals, including the crews of vessels, who participate in marine transportation and commerce;

• (b) promote safety in marine transportation and recreational boating;

• (c) protect the marine environment from damage due to navigation and shipping activities;

• (d) develop a regulatory scheme that encourages viable, effective and economical marine transportation and commerce;

• (e) promote an efficient marine transportation system;

• (f) develop a regulatory scheme that encourages the viable, effective and economical use of Canadian waters by recreational boaters;

• (g) ensure that Canada can meet its international obligations under bilateral and multilateral agreements with respect to navigation and shipping;

• (h) encourage the harmonization of marine practices; and

• (i) establish an effective inspection and enforcement program.

Application

Marginal note:Exclusion

• 7 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, this Act does not apply in respect of a vessel, facility or aircraft that belongs to the Canadian Forces or a foreign military force or in respect of any other vessel, facility or aircraft that is under the command, control or direction of the Canadian Forces.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (2) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, make regulations varying or excluding the application, in respect of government vessels, of any provision of this Act.

• Marginal note:Conflicts with foreign rules

  (3) Regulations made under this Act do not, unless they expressly provide otherwise, apply in respect of a Canadian vessel in the waters of a country other than Canada if the regulations are inconsistent with a law of that country that, by its terms, applies in respect of the vessel when in the waters of that country.

Marginal note:Application of this Part

8 This Part applies in respect of Canadian vessels everywhere, in respect of foreign vessels in Canadian waters, and in respect of pleasure craft that are not Canadian vessels but that are in Canadian waters or in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada. However

• (a) regulations made under paragraph 35(1)(d) in respect of pollution also apply, if they so state, in respect of foreign vessels in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada; and

• (b) subsections 10(2.1) and 35.1(1) also apply in respect of foreign vessels in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada.

Ministerial Responsibility

Marginal note:Role of Minister of Transport

9 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Minister of Transport is responsible for the administration of this Act.

Powers of Ministers

Marginal note:General

• 10 (1) The Minister of Transport or the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans may, with respect to that Minister’s responsibilities under this Act,

  • (a) establish consultative bodies;

  • (b) issue bulletins, guidelines and standards; and

  • (c) enter into agreements or arrangements respecting the administration or enforcement of any provision of this Act, the regulations or an interim order made under subsection 10.1(1) or (1.1) and authorize any person or organization — including a provincial government, a local authority and a government, council or other entity authorized to act on behalf of an Indigenous group — with whom or which an agreement or arrangement is entered into to exercise the powers or perform the duties and functions under this Act that are specified in the agreement or arrangement.

• Marginal note:Exemption power of Ministers

  (2) The Minister of Transport or the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans may, with respect to that Minister’s responsibilities under this Act, exempt for a specified period any authorized representative, person, class of persons, master, vessel, class of vessels, operator of an oil handling facility, oil handling facility or class of oil handling facilities, operator of a hazardous and noxious substances handling facility, hazardous and noxious substances handling facility or class of hazardous and noxious substances handling facilities from the application of any provision of this Act, the regulations or an interim order made under subsection 10.1(1) or (1.1), subject to any conditions that that Minister considers appropriate, if that Minister is of the opinion that the exemption is in the interest of preventing damage to property or the environment or is in the public interest or interest of public health or safety.

• Marginal note:Exemption power of Minister of Transport

  (2.1) The Minister of Transport may, with respect to his or her responsibilities under this Act, exempt for a period of not more than three years any person or vessel or class of persons or vessels from the application of any provisions of this Act or the regulations, subject to any conditions that the Minister considers appropriate, if the exemption would allow the undertaking of research and development, including in respect of any type of vessels, technologies, systems, components or procedures and practices that may, in the Minister’s opinion, enhance marine safety or environmental protection.

• Marginal note:Publication

  (2.2) The Minister of Transport shall publish, on the Department of Transport’s Internet site or by any other means that the Minister of Transport considers appropriate, a notice of every exemption granted under subsection (2.1), as soon as feasible after it is granted.

• Marginal note:Exemption

  (3) Subject to any conditions that the Minister of Transport considers appropriate, the Minister may exempt for a specified period any vessel, or class of vessels, that is en route through Canadian waters but is not en route to or departing from a port in Canada, from the application of any provision of Part 3 (Personnel), 4 (Safety) or 9 (Pollution Prevention — Department of Transport) if the Minister is of the opinion that the provision is substantially similar to a provision of the laws of another state to which the vessel or class of vessels is subject.

• Marginal note:Publication — Canada Gazette

  (4) Notice of every exemption granted under subsection (2), (2.1) or (3) must be published in the Canada Gazette.

• Marginal note:Authorization

  (5) The Minister of Transport or the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans may authorize any person employed in the federal public administration or any police officer, police constable, constable or other person employed for the preservation and maintenance of the public peace, or any class of any of those persons, that that Minister considers proper to exercise any of the powers and perform any of the duties and functions that may be or are required to be exercised or performed by that Minister under this Act.