Boating and the Environment
News and Tips
BOATING AND
THE ENVIRONMENT
“Going Green/Protecting and or
Improving the Environment/Reducing
Emissions/Greenhouse Gas”. How
many times have you heard or read
these words in the past year or two?
How are boaters affected by environmental concerns?
The answer is obvious: clean
water, pristine lakes and fish you can
eat without glowing in the dark, may
be of greater concern to the thousands of boaters in Canada than to
any other demographic.
Canadians are blessed with the
largest supply of freshwater lakes and
rivers in the world. Boaters are
responsible for only a very small percentage of water quality problems,
but we should lead the charge in protecting these waters, and everyone
can do a little better.
habits over the years that were detrimental to good environmental management. This handbook demonstrated “Environmental Best Management
Practices” in all areas of marina operations. The handbook was updated in
2000, is currently being revised again
and more than 350 marinas and yacht
clubs are putting it to good use.
performance) to five (world leaders in
environmental protection) green leaf
anchors.
This Program has enjoyed considerable success; in the six years since
its inception, 270 marinas and yacht
clubs have been Eco-Rated, making it
the most successful marina program
in the world.
WHAT THE MARINE
INDUSTRY IS DOING
The Ontario Marine Operators
Association (OMOA) is the largest
marine trade group in Canada, representing 447 marinas, yacht clubs and
boat dealers as well as another 167
suppliers to the industry. In 1997, the
OMOA, with support from the
Ontario Ministry of Environment
(MOE) and Environment Canada (EC),
produced a Clean Marine Practices
Handbook.
Like the customers they serve,
marinas unknowingly had developed
LOOK FOR MARINAS WITH
THE GREEN LEAF ANCHORS OF THE
“ECO-RATING” CERTIFICATION
PROGRAM
In 1999 a method of auditing the
environmental performance of these
participating facilities was developed
based on the activities described in
the handbook. This “Eco-Rating” audit
of more than 200 business practices
results in a rating from one (good
After having two three-year contracts from the Ministry of the
Environment and Environment
Canada, funding to operate the program was discontinued in December
2006. Under public pressure, MOE
extended the funding for 2007, and
EC delivered half the requested
amount and declared they would not
fund any further requests.
