Canada’s economic and social development has benefited immensely from centuries of marine shipping. Today, the industry supports economies from coast to coast to coast, shipping hundreds of millions of tonnes of cargo, ranging from fuels to food, to consumer goods lining store shelves. The shipping industry is important to the livelihood of Canadians, but has also faced increased public scrutiny in recent years. The risks associated with opening the Arctic to greater ship traffic, increasing marine shipments of oil from Canada’s oil sands, and the growth in vessel size, especially of container ships, have all contributed to this discussion. Recognizing the need for consensus-building research in this area, the Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping asked the Council of Canadian Academies to convene an expert workshop to identify the risks associated with commercial marine shipping in major Canadian shipping regions. The final workshop report, Commercial Marine Shipping Accidents: Understanding the Risks in Canada, identifies the risks of commercial marine shipping accidents across Canada’s regions and for different cargo types, while highlighting gaps in understanding and areas for further research. The workshop report brings together perspectives from academia, government, and industry and is informed by evidence from a survey of the marine shipping community and an extensive review of the existing literature. It can be used as a tool for policy-makers to help inform decisions related to managing the risks of commercial marine shipping accidents. Overall, this workshop report seeks to contribute to a national dialogue about acceptable levels of risk in commercial marine shipping.

"The high standard of living that Canadians enjoy is dependent, in part, on Canada's involvement in global trade. About one third of exports and over a quarter of imports by value are transported by water. Shipping is vital to the competitiveness of Canadian commodity exports and is a lynchpin in many Canadian supply chains. In addition to its economic value, shipping is also critical to coastal community survival and food security in the Arctic, as it is often the only source of food and other supplies for Canada's most northern communities. Current trends in technology, climate change, emerging markets, and other factors, however, may influence the value of commercial marine shipping in the future. This assessment will explore the extent of both economic and social value of shipping on Canada and its regions while also looking at how shipping trends now underway might affect Canadian marine shipping activity in the future. Question What is the social and economic value of commercial marine shipping to Canada and its regions? How will global trends related to shipping affect future shipping activity in Canada?--

First Published in 2005. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

TRB Special Report 293, Risk of Vessel Accidents and Spills in the Aleutian Islands: Designing a Comprehensive Risk Assessment, provides guidance for a comprehensive risk assessment of vessel accidents and spills in the Aleutian Islands. The report examines data related to the risk of oil, chemical, and other hazardous cargo spills from vessel traffic through the Aleutian Islands and identifies key information needed to conduct a comprehensive risk assessment.

This open access book is a result of the Dalhousie-led research project Safe Navigation and Environment Protection, supported by a grant from the Ocean Frontier Institute’s the Canada First Research Excellent Fund (CFREF). The book focuses on Arctic shipping and investigates how ocean change and anthropogenic impacts affect our understanding of risk, policy, management and regulation for safe navigation, environment protection, conflict management between ocean uses, and protection of Indigenous peoples’ interests. A rapidly changing Arctic as a result of climate change and ice loss is rendering the North more accessible, providing new opportunities while producing impacts on the Arctic. The book explores ideas for enhanced governance of Arctic shipping through risk-based planning, marine spatial planning and scaling up shipping standards for safety, environment protection and public health.