Application of Dispersants:
Approval and Testing methods inCanadian Waters

Don Rodden
Canadian Coast Guard
Superintendent EnvironmentalResponse (Pacific)

Geography of Canada’s Pacific Coast? Approximately 30,000 Km of Coastline? Remote and sparsely populated? Extreme weather conditions; fog to hurricane forcewinds? Ecologically, very richGovernment Structure andAuthorities on Canada’s Pacific
Coast? DFO/Coast Guard? Environment Canada/Canadian Wildlife

Services? Province of British Columbia

Canada’s Spill Response System? Coast Guard’s Response

Management System (RMS)
ON-SCENE-COMMANDERCOMMUNICATIONSREGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL EMERGENCY TEAMSHORELINE CLEAN-UP ASSESSMENT TEAMOPERATIONSLEGALHEALTH AND SAFETY

PLANNING

LOGISTICS

FINANCECanadian Coast Guard
Response Management Structure? Regional Environmental

Emergency Team (REET)
ON-SCENE-COMMANDER
COMMUNICATIONSREGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL EMERGENCY TEAMSHORELINE CLEAN-UP ASSESSMENT TEAMOPERATIONSLEGALHEALTH AND SAFETY

PLANNING

LOGISTICSFINANCE

Canadian Coast Guard
Response Management Structure? Shoreline Cleanup Assessment

Team (SCAT)
ON-SCENE-COMMANDER
COMMUNICATIONSREGION ENVIRONMENTAL EMGENCY TEAMSHORELINE CLEAN-UP ASSESSMENT TEAMOPERATIONSLEGALHEALTH AND SAFETY

PLANNING

LOGISTICS

FINANCEIssues to be Address by Responders? Limited Window of Opportunity? Conflicting opinions on effectiveness? Logistics of effective application? Logistics of effective supply/stockpiling? International Commitments

Coast Guard’s
Activities on Dispersant
Application? Combined Canada/USA application

exercises

Coast Guard’s
Activities on Dispersant Application? Workshop on the use of dispersants and theapproval process? Potential for Pre-approvalFuture for the Coast guard? Industrial Developments? Development of Regional/National Policy? Pre-approval? Stockpiling of product? Agreements/Contracts for aircraftUse of Dispersants in Canadian Waters
There is no agreed upon criteria for the use of dispersants in Canadian waters.
The Fisheries Act of Canada prohibits the depositing of ‘a deleterious substance in Canadian waters frequented by fish’. As
all dispersants have some negative impact on the marine environment, it is technically illegal to use dispersant in Canada,
however, under the Canada Shipping Act, the Coast Guard, in an emergency, has extensive powers to prevent or minimize theimpact of oil released from a ship. These powers include directing, seizing or even destroying a vessel.
The Coast Guard On Scene Commander (OSC) during a spill is the lead Federal Agency and is ultimately responsible for all
clean-up actions, but all actions will be subject to the test of reasonableness.
To complicate the issue further, Coast Guard has been moved from within the Department of Transport to the Departmentof Fisheries and Oceans who administer the Fisheries Act as well as sections of the Canada Shipping Act (through the CoastGuard).
The current position of the Coast Guard on the Pacific Coast of Canada is that dispersants are a tool that, under suitable
circumstances, can be used to minimize the impact of an oil spill. If there were an incident that the OSC, after consulting with all
his advisers, felt that the NET ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT could be reduced by the use of dispersants, he would be obligated to usethat tool. This action could, theoretically, result in the unple asant situation where one branch of the Government is charging
another branch with a criminal offence.
Fortunately, no such incident has occurred, however, to avoid this situation ever arising, we have held workshops andexercises with Fisheries scientists and regulators, and with Coa st Guard spill response personnel. The goal is to try to identify
criteria and gain pre -approval for the use of dispersants and to identify geographic areas and physical conditions where their use
might be considered. No conditions and/or areas have been agreed upon to date.
In conjunction with the pre -approval process, the Canadian Coast Guard has been working with the US Coast Guard on theoperational aspect of applying dispersants, to ensure that the dispersant is applied in the most effective manner with minimal
negative impact on the environment.