Who Owns the Arctic?

Ballast water rules are long overdue

Paul Brodie, Halifax Chronicle-Herald, October 17, 2010

On March 23, 1752, the first edition of Canada’s first newspaper, The Halifax Gazette, was published. There was mention of problems related to ship worm, a nuisance marine species that was actually a wood-boring clam. Ad justments to ship handling and cruis ing speeds, reduced cargo capacity, a need for larger crews and increased stone ballasting were some of the con sequences of the infestation.

Now, 250 years later, invasive species are a global concern and inland water ways of North America are under threat.

No spills, injuries after fuel tanker runs aground in Northwest Passage

Canadian Press, September 2, 2010

A fuel tanker carrying nine million litres of fuel has run aground near the Nunavut community of Gjoa Haven in the Northwest Passage.

The Nanny _ a modern, double-hulled tanker _ hit the unmarked shoal in the Simpson Strait southwest of the community on Monday while on a voyage refuelling local communities, reports the Coast Guard.

"She´s just caught up on a sand bar, that´s all," said Dennis White of vessel owner Coastal Shipping of St. John´s, Newfoundland.

Marine shippers pan tough new Arctic vessel regulations

Randy Boswell, CanWest News Service, July 9, 2010

The federal government's tough new rules regulating Arctic shipping have drawn fire from the largest international association of maritime cargo carriers, which describes the mandatory registration system introduced by Canada on July 1 as "drastic" and a potential threat to the long-standing "right to innocent passage" on the world's oceans.

Ottawa to keep tabs on large ships in northern waters

Mandatory reporting to replace voluntary system as Arctic development ramps up

Canadian Press, Ottawa, February 26, 2010

Ottawa is moving ahead with plans to require large vessels to report to authorities as they sail through Canada’s northern waters.

U.S. concerned with new Canadian shipping rules in Arctic

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s plan to tighten shipping regulations in the disputed Northwest Passage has caught the attention of the U.S. government, which said Thursday that "we will be discussing the proposal with Canada" to ensure it doesn't violate international law.

Canwest News Service, August 28, 2008

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s plan to tighten shipping regulations in the disputed Northwest Passage has caught the attention of the U.S. government, which said Thursday that “we will be discussing the proposal with Canada” to ensure it doesn’t violate international law.

Arctic sovereignty not under threat: Cannon

Bob Weber, Canadian Press, January 13, 2009

Canada's Arctic sovereignty is not under increased threat despite recent forthright statements from the United States and the European Union spelling out their interests in the region, says Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon. ...

For the full text, see: Arctic sovereignty not under threat

Does the Northwest Passage still matter?

The shrinking Arctic icecap may soon ease Canada's sovereignty problem

J.L. Granatstein, Globe and Mail, January 12, 2008

Does Canadian sovereignty over the Northwest Passage still matter? To even ask that question seems more than slightly odd, given the Harper government's frequent "use it or lose it" rhetoric about the Arctic and the announcement at the beginning of December of changes to the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act. Transport Minister John Baird announced the government intended to extend the application of the act from 100 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles in an effort to control shipping and to stop the pollution of Arctic waters - a salutary aim. When the act is amended and put into effect, Canada will assume responsibility for environmental protection and enforcement over an additional half-million square kilometres of the Arctic Ocean.

New bill extends Canada’s sovereignty in Arctic

Canwest News Service, Thursday, December 4, 2008

OTTAWA - The federal government introduced new legislation this week to expand Canada's sovereignty over Arctic waters in an effort to maintain more control over pollution in the Far North.

Introduced Wednesday in the House of Commons, the bill amends the federal Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act to change the definition of "Arctic waters" from 100 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles.