New WWF-Canada Report Urges Tough Action from Government to Save Seabirds from Illegal Oil Dumping

WWF

In the most recent case, a Bahamian registered ship was charged with dumping off the coast of Newfoundland earlier this month, leaving behind a 116 km long slick in an important seabird habitat that includes gannets, common murres and shearwaters.

“Some 300,000 seabirds die every year on Canada’s Grand Banks and Scotian Shelf, which is more birds than those killed by the Exxon Valdez tanker disaster,” said Dr. Robert Rangeley, Marine Program Director, WWF-Canada’s Atlantic Regional Office. “The tragedy is that while this dumping is easily preventable, it threatens one of the planet’s most important wintering grounds for seabirds. Canada is shirking its international responsibilities by giving out the equivalent of traffic tickets to flagrantly criminal acts.”

WWF’s report urges the federal government to adopt the following recommendations:

  • Stronger legal deterrence. Imposed fines, including minimum fines, must be increased to clearly reflect the full extent of the crimes under both shipping and environmental laws.
  • Improved surveillance and evidence-gathering technologies. Satellite and aircraft surveillance need to be enhanced to better detect oil dumping. Mandatory on-board transponders and oil fingerprinting of all vessels in Canadian waters would facilitate surveillance, enforcement and the prevention of pollution.
  • Strict waste accounting. Shippers must account for all produced waste oil or face illegal dumping charges. Falsification of records should result in fraud charges.
  • Implement a ship accreditation system. This system would be for shippers who promote and adopt best environmental practices and have clean environmental records.
  • Protect and monitor sensitive areas. The Canadian government should seek an International Maritime Organisation (IMO) designation of Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSA) for offshore areas where seabirds are most vulnerable.

“There has been no shortage of recommendations for solving ship-source oil pollution over the years. Unfortunately the problem is still plaguing our oceans,” said Dr. Rangeley. The most recent recommendations, listed in the Prevention of Oiled Wildlife report led by the Canadian Coast Guard, are very encouraging, but we don’t want them to languish on the shelf.”

“The average imposed fine, if caught illegally dumping in Canada is only $21,000,” said Dr. Francis Wiese, author of WWF-Canada’s report. “To a ship’s operator, the chances of being caught are low. The fine can be considered a business cost and is usually covered by insurance.” US fines are five to 1000 times higher than those imposed in Canada. This encourages many ship operators to dump their bilge in Canadian waters, before entering the US.

“The satellite detection of the most recent slick off the coast of Newfoundland is a very important advance over previous surveillance technologies. With strong enforcement and prosecution this new technology will go a very long way to solving the problem,” said Dr. Bill Montevecchi, research scientist at Memorial University and WWF-Canada advisor. “Here, in Newfoundland, the Coast Guard, Environment Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service and environmental organisations are working closely together to address this horrific illegal pollution.”

Four times as much oil is illegally dumped into the sea from ships each year than from all the world’s oil spills combined. A drop of oil the size of a quarter is enough to kill a seabird. Oil destroys the insulation properties of a seabird’s feathers. Bone-chilling ocean water soaks through to its skin and the bird suffers from hypothermia and starvation. The oil is also a poison that can kill outright or slowly, through liver damage or blindness.