NAVIGATION PROTECTION
NAVIGATION PROTECTION
OVERVIEW – LOGIC MODEL
WHO’S INVOLVED
MISSION: To ensure the protection and safety of navigation in Canadian waters.
OBJECTIVES:
Facilitate safe and shared use of Canada’s waterways
Manage interferences with navigation (Ensure the public’s right of navigation)
Protect the rights and property of owners and salvors (Receiver of Wreck)
INPUTS
Financial Resources
Human Resources
Assets
KEY ACTIVITIES
Administer Regulations and Directives
KEY OUTPUTS
Works Review Process
Other Activities Related to the
Navigable Waters Protection Act
(NWPA)
The NWPA
Verification of
Information Received
Determination of
Navigability
OUTCOMES
Protected public right of navigation
Protected property rights of wreck owners and salvors (Receiver of Wreck)
Minimized environmental impact / damage
Compliance with legislative requirements
Behavioral change
Increased awareness and use of guidelines and procedures
Enhanced confidence and satisfaction with the program
Public / Stakeholder / Client
Works proponents
Aquaculture
Fishers
Oil/gas producers
Waterway users
Upland property owners
Shoreline property
owners
General public
Industry
Utilities
Forestry
Mining
Heavy construction
Wreck owners
Salvors
OGDs
Provinces
Municipalities
Diving associations
Cottager associations
Insurance companies
Police agencies
CO-DELIVERERS
Marine Programs
Regional Operations
Centre (ROCs)
DFO programs
Habitat
Canadian Hydrographic
Services (CHS)
Small Craft Harbours
Aboriginal Affairs
Legal
Area Directors
OGDs
Environment Canada
Justice Canada
National Energy Board
(NEB)
Heritage
Police Agencies
Wreck Storage Facilities
Provinces
Conservation Authorities
Environmental
committees
BENEFICIARIES
ULTIMATE IMPACTS
Maritime Safety
USERS/CLIENTS
Protection of the Marine and
Freshwater Environment
Marine Trade and Commerce
Federal, provincial and
territorial governments
Aboriginal groups
Canadians at large
Neighboring countries
Environmental
community
Marine community at
large
Upland Property owners
MISSION & OBJECTIVES
To ensure the protection and safety of navigation in Canadian Waters. The following are the
Navigation Protection’s (NP) objectives:
♦ Facilitate safe and shared use of Canada’s waterways
♦ Manage interferences with navigation (ensure the public’s right of navigation)
♦ Protect the rights and property of owners and salvors (receiver of wreck)
WHAT’S INVOLVED
The NP Program administers the Navigable Waters Protection Act (NWPA), one of the oldest
pieces of federal legislation, and whose primary purpose is to manage interferences with
navigation. It became law in 1882, and was originally intended to protect marine navigation routes
by controlling the logging industry, and the construction of bridges and dams.
The NWPA ensures that the Minister of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) approves
the construction, placement, repairing or modification of any works that will substantially interfere
with navigation in, over, under, through or across any navigable waterway in Canada. The NP
Program is responsible for safeguarding and enforcing the navigability of waters with respect to
construction of works and the shared use of navigable waterways, which is as equally important for
recreation as it is for commercial purposes.
The Program also administers the Receiver of Wreck function. A Receiver of Wreck is an officer of
the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) appointed by Order-in-Council to act as a custodian of “wreck” in
the absence of the rightful owner. There are 19 wreck districts across Canada, administered by 25
Receivers of Wreck. The salvage, protection, and disposal of marine wreck are mandated under
the provisions of the Canada Shipping Act.
The Program conducts ongoing client consultations with a multitude of stakeholders, including
advisory councils, federal, provincial and municipal governments, and other individuals or
organizations that may be affected by works that impact on navigation. On both a national and
international level, the Program provides advice, guidance, resources and subject matter expertise
to a diverse group of individuals, organizations, and governments.
WHO’S INVOLVED
In 2003-2004, there was 65 staff dedicated to the national NP Program, 32 of which were Field
Officers. A client for the NP Program is any individual, company or government agency that
proposes to construct, repair, or modify any work in the navigable waters of Canada. These may
include: aquaculture sites, fishers, oil/gas producers, shoreline and upland property owners,
waterway users, utilities, wreck owners, salvors, other federal departments, provinces,
municipalities, insurance companies, police agencies, and industries such as forestry, mining, and
heavy construction.
The Program works in partnership with others within DFO to ensure the effective delivery of
services to their clients. Partners include: Fish Habitat Management, Canadian Hydrographic
Services, Conservation and Protection, the Office of Sustainable Aquaculture, Small Craft
Harbours, Aboriginal Affairs, Regional Operations Centres, and Legal Services.
Partners outside of DFO include: Environment Canada, the National Energy Board, Justice
Canada, Heritage Canada, police agencies, conservation authorities, and environmental
committees.
WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING
The challenges in facilitating the safe and shared use of Canada’s waterways are due in large part
to the broad diversity of people, organizations, industries, and governments who use or have an
interest in those waterways. The increasing level of activity and growth of new industries, existing
commercial interests, and recreational areas, coupled with environmental concerns, present added
complexity and workload within resource constraints. For example, aquaculture is one of the
fastest-growing food production activities in the world. In 1999, the Canadian aquaculture industry
produced approximately 113,083 tonnes of product, which represents 22.5% of the value of
Canadian fish and seafood production. Although aquaculture projects make up approximately 8%
of NWPA applications, these projects account for 50% of the Program’s workload.
There has also been a significant increase in NWPA applications over the past six years. This can
be attributed to the large number of works on our waterways that lead to increased user conflicts.
Other factors include the growing awareness of the NWPA process and linkages to Fish Habitat
Management and environmental assessment requirements. The NWPA is the largest trigger of the
Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA), adding to the complexity and length of the
application process.
With the announcement on December 12, 2003 by the Prime Minister that the CCG will become a
Special Operating Agency (SOA) within DFO, the responsibility of NP Program reporting was
transferred to Transport Canada (TC). Therefore, future reporting on the program will be done
solely by TC.
WHAT DID WE ACCOMPLISH
OUTPUTS
VERIFICATION OF INFORMATION RECEIVED - APPLICATIONS
The number of received applications for different types of works has steadily increased over the
last seven years. As represented by the Number of Received Applications graph, the number in
2003 was the highest on record; a 71% increase from 1997. As represented by Number of
Applications Approved graph, despite an average annual rate of application increase of 12%, the
proportion of approved applications increased from 53% in 1997 to 71% in 2003; although that was
less than the 82% of applications approved in 2002. The Program’s ability to carry out its
responsibility throughout the regions will decline at the current annual rate of application increases.
As represented by the Regional Distribution of Applications graph, the distribution of applications
by Region remains a relatively stable statistic; but these percentages may change from year to
year.
VERIFICATION OF INFORMATION RECEIVED – APPLICATION PROCESS
As represented by the Applications in Progress graph, even after a surge of 270% in the number of
applications for different types of works from the year 2000 to 2001, the number in 2003 was
slightly higher. The Average Applications Process Time was the second highest in 2003 (138
days), following the record of 160 days in 2002. The increases in application processing time may
be attributed to more stringent legislative and environmental requirements, resource constraints,
and by the surge in applications in progress due to work proponents’ increased awareness of these
factors.
SITE INSPECTIONS
In an ongoing effort to ensure that the shared use of Canada’s waterways{ XE "Waterways" } is
safe, the CCG processes applications for works that may impede navigation in waters that are
determined to be navigable{ XE "Navigation" }, such as bridges, booms, causeways and dams.
These works require formal approval under the Navigable Waters Protection{ XE "Protection" } Act{
XE "Navigable Waters Protection Act" }{ XE "Acts" }.
The CCG also conducts inspections to ensure that works comply with approved plans, and to
monitor any possible interference in navigation of the shared use of Canada’s waterways. The
Number of Inspections to Ensure Safety of Works rose approximately 50% between 1997 and
2003, the latter being the second highest on record. The Central and Arctic region, being the
largest, most populated region with a highly developed infrastructure, is the main contributor to the
total national Number of Inspections: 1,282 out of the national total of 2,154 or 60%.
REACH
PARTNERSHIPS - FISH HABITAT MANAGEMENT
Fish Habitat Management, on behalf of the Program, conducts environmental assessments under
the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA) when an application is processed. The
Number of Environmental Assessments increased ten-fold from 1997 to 2001, and has since been
decreasing annually. The Average Number of Days for an Environmental Assessment to be
processed has increased from 250 days in 1997 to approximately 390 days in 2003, or 56%. The
increase was also significant from 2002 to 2003, being 14%. The legislative requirements, the
volume of environmental assessments, and resource constraints directly affect the Program’s
ability to process work applications in a timely manner.
OUTCOMES
CONFIDENCE AND SATISFACTION WITH PROGRAM
Statistics on the Number of Complaints concerning general types of works is an important element
of the Program’s feedback mechanism. The average Number of Applications per Complaint graph
represents the number of applications processed per one complaint. While the number of
complaints increased ten-fold from 1997 to 2003, the number of received applications increased
only by 71% during this period. This increase in complaints may be attributed to increased
awareness of the application process, and applications for different types of work. Represented
data illustrates the relationship between public awareness and concerns, and the level of
transparency and information available.
WHAT’S NEXT
To meet the challenges associated with the increase of NWPA applications, the NP Program will
continue to investigate innovative ways to deliver its services and information products in order to
process applications in a timely manner. The Program will be developing a policy framework,
updating guidelines such as aquaculture site application and marking, continuing with the Service
Delivery Improvement Initiative, and developing intranet/internet sites as client information tools.
The Program is also continuing with the amendment and modernization of the NWPA to simplify
the regulatory framework and ensure its responsiveness to regulators; developing a Navigable
Waters Training Program to enable and facilitate NP services delivery in the Area and District level
and; developing a compliance and enforcement strategy to provide strengthened capacity to
monitor the aquaculture industry and ensure compliance with conditions of approval.
The NP Program will consider reporting on measures and indicators such as: the volume of
communications material distributed; percentage of Research and Development (R&D) projects
that lead to meaningful change; the number of projects which trigger CEAA; and the number of
conflicts.
© Copyright 2026 Paperzz