Marine pollution spills - Volume of marine pollution spills detected offshore and in coastal areas from aerial surveillance, Canada

The Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators (CESI) program provides data and information to track Canada's performance on key environmental sustainability issues. The Marine pollution spills indicator reports the volume of marine pollution spills detected from 2010 to 2017. The indicator also presents data with respect to known sources, including volume and detections per patrol hour of aircraft surveillance. The National Aerial Surveillance Program monitors ships transiting waters under Canadian jurisdiction. The indicator provides an understanding of how active surveillance impacts the occurrence of marine pollution spills. Spills come from ship operations, intentional dumping and accidents. Aerial surveillance is widely adopted worldwide and is considered to be the most effective method for detection of marine pollution spills. The presence of surveillance aircraft acts as a deterrent by discouraging illegal discharges of pollutants at sea. The information gathered is used to enforce the provisions of Canadian legislation applicable to illegal discharges from ships. Information is provided to Canadians in a number of formats including: static and interactive maps, charts and graphs, HTML and CSV data tables and downloadable reports. See the supplementary documentation for the data sources and details on how the data were collected and how the indicator was calculated.

Supplemental Information

Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators - Home page:

https://www.canada.ca/environmental-indicators