Aquaholic
Crew Member
Dead boats will be removed from river in Pitt Meadows
Transport Canada will clean up wrecks left in the Alouette River
www.mapleridgenews.com
Dead boats to be removed
- Thread starter Aquaholic
- Start date
www.mapleridgenews.com
Gong Show
Well-Known Member
I think the last registered owners are long deceased.
Lots of almost derelict vessel transfers are not registered.
ziggy
Well-Known Member
Why I would keep a bill of sale. They should go back to the last licensed or registered owner. If they claim to have sold it, show the bill of sale and let them go after the new owner. Simple enough really for those that the last licensed or registered owners are still alive, which should be most.
Aces
Well-Known Member
Sad but true.
Max123
Well-Known Member
I'm really happy to hear that someone is finally stepping up to deal with this. I'm at Pitt Meadows Marina, and the last mile of the Alouette before it dumps into the Pitt was getting to be a real disaster. There are 1-2 somewhat 'quaint' historic wrecks along the shore, but its gotten beyond ridiculous over the past few years - at least half dozen wrecked fibreglass boats, that half sunk boat house, and a few derelict docks.
I find the real issue is the general lack of initiative by all levels of government to deal with wrecks in all sorts of waterways. The municipality of Pitt Meadows has the most direct interest in this and should have been all over it years ago - but all you hear is this phony hand wringing about jurisdiction and trying to pass the buck to make someone else responsible. If someone's dog takes a dump on your lawn, you can cry all day about the injustice, but in the end you are the one that's going to be dealing with it.
I don't get it - cleaning up derelict boats is not really a 'tough' political issue. Its highly visible, everyone agrees it should be taken care of, and its a visual signifier of disorder/mismanagement - any politician that steps up and gets it done can justifiably take a victory lap.
I'm all for hunting down the previous owners and giving them the bill for cleanup - that's one side of the issue. The other side of the issue is that the government needs to plan for things like this, and have a clear policy so that civil servants can act quickly to clean it up so things don't get this bad. If you see an abandoned car in Vancouver with expired registration, you can call 311 and the car will be towed away in a day or two. It happens, people run out of money or die and boats sink - its not a surprise, and good government means having policies in place - then dealing with the individual owners later.
I find the real issue is the general lack of initiative by all levels of government to deal with wrecks in all sorts of waterways. The municipality of Pitt Meadows has the most direct interest in this and should have been all over it years ago - but all you hear is this phony hand wringing about jurisdiction and trying to pass the buck to make someone else responsible. If someone's dog takes a dump on your lawn, you can cry all day about the injustice, but in the end you are the one that's going to be dealing with it.
I don't get it - cleaning up derelict boats is not really a 'tough' political issue. Its highly visible, everyone agrees it should be taken care of, and its a visual signifier of disorder/mismanagement - any politician that steps up and gets it done can justifiably take a victory lap.
I'm all for hunting down the previous owners and giving them the bill for cleanup - that's one side of the issue. The other side of the issue is that the government needs to plan for things like this, and have a clear policy so that civil servants can act quickly to clean it up so things don't get this bad. If you see an abandoned car in Vancouver with expired registration, you can call 311 and the car will be towed away in a day or two. It happens, people run out of money or die and boats sink - its not a surprise, and good government means having policies in place - then dealing with the individual owners later.
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Max123
Well-Known Member
Just to provide some background on the derelict boat issue in Alouette, here are a few links:
deadboatsdisposalsociety.ca
- Dead Boats Disposal Society: Non-profit that does cleanup work - I believe they are the ones that will be doing the work to cleanup Alouette. Funded mainly by donations plus grants from the feds. They seem to do great work but frankly if there was a wrecked semi sitting in the middle of the Port Mann bridge, we wouldn't leave it to a non-profit run by volunteers.
globalnews.ca
- Recent attempt by Dead Boats Society to get funding for Alouette cleanup from the Province, denied this past spring.
www.theprogress.com
- Feds appear to be stepping up with funding - late summer (likely leading up to current agreements)
Full credit to Neil Corbett of the Maple Ridge - Pitt Meadows News for tracking the story.
One quote that stood out to me as the most non-sensical bit of do-nothing bureaucratic babble:
"If a boat is deemed abandoned, Transport Canada takes reasonable measures to ensure that an owner is identified, and is responsible for their vessel, before taking action to remove and dispose of it. Transport Canada has the authority to act on vessels that are abandoned or wrecked, but not for reasons such as unsightliness,"
The buck definitely did not stop there...
Home - Dead Boats Disposal Society
deadboatsdisposalsociety.ca
Abandoned boat removal groups disappointed with B.C.’s rejection of funding request - BC | Globalnews.ca
Dead Boats Disposal Society director John Roe said he takes this funding rejection "personally," claiming he hasn't received a satisfactory explanation for the refusal.
globalnews.ca
Transport Canada investigating dead boats, sunken boathouse, in Pitt Meadows river
Dead Boats Removal Society optimistic about cleanup of Alouette River
www.theprogress.com
Full credit to Neil Corbett of the Maple Ridge - Pitt Meadows News for tracking the story.
One quote that stood out to me as the most non-sensical bit of do-nothing bureaucratic babble:
"If a boat is deemed abandoned, Transport Canada takes reasonable measures to ensure that an owner is identified, and is responsible for their vessel, before taking action to remove and dispose of it. Transport Canada has the authority to act on vessels that are abandoned or wrecked, but not for reasons such as unsightliness,"
The buck definitely did not stop there...
Max123
Well-Known Member
Here's some further background, which summarizes some recent action as a result of the 2019 Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act:
Basically, just heightened enforcement powers to track down/fine owners. Sure, this is great - but the fact remains that most of the derelict vessels I see are clearly the result of people that have fallen on hard times/homelessness. You can't have a policy to clean up the west coast that depends on getting fines/funding from homeless people. I 100% agree that fines should be established as a disincentive, but when the people involved are basically broke - the threat of a fine is pretty meaningless.
The best part of the article was when the author notes that the homeless guy's plan to deal with the vessel was rejected by the Coast Guard. The idea that a homeless guy could manage an application for a marine salvage operation (and then actually execute it) is beyond crazy.
Basically, just heightened enforcement powers to track down/fine owners. Sure, this is great - but the fact remains that most of the derelict vessels I see are clearly the result of people that have fallen on hard times/homelessness. You can't have a policy to clean up the west coast that depends on getting fines/funding from homeless people. I 100% agree that fines should be established as a disincentive, but when the people involved are basically broke - the threat of a fine is pretty meaningless.
The best part of the article was when the author notes that the homeless guy's plan to deal with the vessel was rejected by the Coast Guard. The idea that a homeless guy could manage an application for a marine salvage operation (and then actually execute it) is beyond crazy.
Max123
Well-Known Member
To close on maybe a somewhat helpful note: If you have an old vessel, don't be that guy that posts it for free on craigslist and then we all see it wrecked in False Creek a few months later. Just pay to dispose of it. There aren't many helpful resources on this, but last time I was at EcoWaste in Richmond I noted that they take old fibreglass boats at $26/ft to dispose - which seems like a totally reasonable price. This isn't the Vancouver Dump - this is a private operation, and they seemed to specialize in construction waste.
ecowaste.com
Pricing – EcoWaste
ecowaste.com
Damn Ugly
Well-Known Member
Does she mind when you call her that? /s ;o)
Seriously, though....this is so overdue. Glad it is finally happening and I'd be thrilled if by some miracle they could hold the licensed owners financially responsible.
Max123
Well-Known Member
- I totally missed the slight spelling difference. Isn't that an old Robin Williams line from 'Good Morning Vietnam':"The Mississippi River broke through a protective dike today. What is a protective dike? Is it a large woman that says "Don't go near there! But Betty- Don't go near there! Stay away from the river!"
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Max123
Well-Known Member
Last update - all work has been completed. The old boat house has been removed and all old wrecked boats have been removed. I walked the dike from the mouth of the Alouette to the Harris Rd bridge crossing and all boats had been removed. I was hoping that they were going to remove the old derelict docks at the Pitt Meadows Marina as well, but alas.
Job well done.
Below is a photo from the same location I shot a week ago
Job well done.
Below is a photo from the same location I shot a week ago
Attachments
Somewhat related, it's nice to see something being done. I remember talking with the harbour master in a small town marina. He had a guy with what must have been a 60' old wooden tug tied up long term, falling into disrepair. He was really worried about it but didn't have a way to deal with it. The owner paid the moorage each month.
www.vicnews.com
Canadian Coast Guard fines Haida Gwaii abandoned boat owner $12K
The coast guard’s ‘hazardous boat’ fine was only the second ever given out in B.C.
www.vicnews.com
Aquaholic
Crew Member
Is there a volunteer society for this?
-Jim-
Active Member
I don't know. I doubt that I would have the patience to belong to one. I'd like once a boat has been identified as hazardous or "abandoned"; a 72 hour clock should start and remediation would have to be documented by that time or it would be removed at the owners cost. Boat ownership is a privilege, and so is mooring it at public places. Abuse of that should not be tolerated for more than absolutely necessary.
Aquaholic
Crew Member
That’s true, but we live in such a big space, the bureaucracy that would need to be set up to handle this would not be able to get the funding. Similar to waiting for a DFO officer to show up and bust someone poaching, limited resources are at the root of a remedy.
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