Bill C-48, first proposed in the House of Commons in 2017, regulates vessels that transport crude oil to/from Ports along the North coast of British Columbia. With its passing earlier this month, the legislation formalizes an oil tanker moratorium in the area shown in this map. The prohibited area in green will complement the already existing voluntary exclusion zone. The narrow margin with which with the bill was passed (3 votes) highlights the controversy surrounding the issue.

Please note the following background information on the motion from the Library of Parliament.

“The moratorium is in keeping with a 1972 federal government policy decision to impose a moratorium on crude oil tanker traffic through Dixon Entrance, Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound.2 This decision, while never formalized in legislation, was expressed in a House of Commons resolution stating that “the movement of oil by tanker along the coast of British Columbia from Valdez in Alaska to Cherry Point in Washington is inimical to Canadian interests especially those of an environmental nature.” 3

The tanker exclusion zone (see Figure 1) dates back to a 1988 voluntary agreement between the Canadian Coast Guard, the United States Coast Guard and the American Institute of Merchant Shipping (now the Chamber of Shipping of America).4 The purpose of the zone is “to keep laden tankers west of the zone boundary in an effort to protect the shoreline and coastal waters from a potential risk of pollution.””

The Chamber of Shipping succinctly recaps some of the opposing viewpoints in their recent circular –

“The effort to ban tankers on the BC North Coast is almost 40 years in the making and has galvanized attention from coastal First Nations. While many stakeholders were vehemently opposed to the ban and its focus on Canadian energy exports, the Chamber opposed the legislation for its blatant disregard for evidence-based marine policy and the negative precedent it establishes. This legislation does not provide any additional marine safety measures for the BC North Coast and it does not stop a tanker from transiting the area. This precedent is part of a growing trend in Canada and indicative of a lack of Federal focus in demanding and respecting standardized and evidence-based risk assessments.

 The Senate has voted to pass Bill C-48, the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act. The draft legislation passed by a margin of 3 votes after the House of Commons quashed a recommended amendment for a mandatory review of the legislation within 5 years. Alberta has vowed to launch a legal challenge to this bill, claiming that it is discriminatory to Alberta’s ability to access global markets. This legislation does not provide any additional marine safety measures for the BC North Coast and it does not stop a tanker from transiting the area, but it does stop tankers from stopping at ports on the coast of northern BC.”