Relax Peter. The Canadian government will bail you guys out. Don’t worry, you may want self government, land ownership and all the rest but when there is a real problem, canada will save your butt.

Great we have tankers ready to run aground. This news isn’t going to help Embridge with their mission.

Question is, why is there a Russian ship full of fuel drifting in our waters anyway?

“The Haida Nation was notified around 7:30 this morning by the Canadian Coast guard, which called on the Haida to mobilize vessels to assist with a marine emergency.”

And in spite of all the BS the Canadian government puts them through, the Haida will probably mobilize every vessel they have to assist.

Just like the folks in Hartley Bay did when they helped rescue countless people off the Queen of the North when it sunk.

Just like 1/3rd of eligible Aboriginal men did in WWII even though they fought for a country that didn’t give them the right to vote.

Shall I go on?

Why not blame the lunatics in Ottawa who created this mess countless years ago way back to the BNA Act?

And, lildigger, if you were stuck in the water off Haida Gwai, would you accept help from the people of Haida Gwai to save your butt?

lildigger

You’ve got it backwards. If the Haida were sovereign, they would be able to bar oil-laden ships from coming that close to their territory and they would operate their own coast guard in order to deal with such problems. Canada has the obligation to protect the Haida from oil spills precisely because it claims sovereignty and exercises effective control of the territory.

Canada is evidently not doing much of a job. The Coast Guard ship dispatched to deal with this is reportedly coming from 750km away.

Howard B Stern… Good posting… I’m all with you.. Regardless who owns the land or whatever, Canada needs to protect our environment. Many thanks to all the residents of that Island to come to the rescue. Its not easy dropping everything your doing to go help.. Your personal life becomes secondary, in cases like this..

maverick –> Please read the story .. it is a container cargo ship, NOT a oil tanker … and the fuel and oil is what runs the ship’s engines … much the same as your passenger car is not an tanker truck, but your car does have an oil reservoir and gas tank.

anotherside…..regardless of what the ship is carrying…..500 tonnes of Bunker oil, aka Fuel oil = over 500,000 liters of oil. Not good. However, this has SFA to do with government. Seriously, next we will blame the government for the poor weather that is causing the ship to drift towards land!
We ALL rely on these ships to get our ‘STUFF’ from oversea’s to us. These are the risks that come with international trade. Live with it! I am sure people would be less concerned about the environment and the government if that ship was loaded with iphones and ipads!

Whatever “anotherside” 500 metric tonnes of bunker fuel and 60 metric tonnes of diesel I feel is something that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Only and idiot would make light of it. Who cares it’s not a tanker!! The possibilities are still catastrophic.

So billposer how would they pay for their own coast guard? How would they get freight on or off the island if not with oil laden ships? What no ferries, they have oil. Hey what about gas stations on the island?

Lots of emotion but not much thuoght on this topic.

Well said seamut. amazing how many people like to rant about the big bad oil companies and the terrible government. Same people that thing gas comes from the gas pump and electricity comes from a hole in the wall!

Maverick 1965 re Russian Ship in our waters:
Loss of ship power and ocean currents along with weather.

BillPoser: CCGS ship Gordon Reid on scene this PM.

Yeah read that thanks

Ships ply the seas 24/7/365.
This is a risk every country takes.
Why do some people think that they don’t have to accept any risks?
Pretty childish.

there swill be many more incidents of this , with larger amounts of crude, in larger ships, when the pipeline gets built…COUNT ON IT

this is just a small sample of things that could come, and hopefully a warning that the powers to be listen to..but I doubt it.

Bcracer take a deep breath, the world will not end.

yes but the world will end for those people that live in the area of a spill, should it happen..

You use oil? What about all the natural seeps?

This sort of scenario is common in the Russian fleets. You wouldn’t believe some the scrap the they’re still floating around the oceans. A few years back we were unloading a Russian ship in Ontario that just came from South America. This pile still had cable cranes on deck! Anyway, the ship broke down in Lake Superior for 2 weeks, leaking bunker fuel which is prohibited in a freshwater seaway. Russian Gong Show!

500 TON. That sounds like a huge number. To put it in perspective.. it`s about 4 railcars maybe 5 of cargo. Does this sound like a major spill?

maverick / rocketeer … I was not making light of the situation … I was avoiding sensationalizing the story with distorted statements … If you want to be credible and have an impact with your statements, I suggest sticking within the facts as reported would be more useful. Personally I sincerely hope the attention this event is garnering gains further support for rescue services along with strenuous shipping safety practices for the west coast. Sensationalism will increase the chances of any reasonable arguments being dismissed as were Peter’s false cries of calling wolf.

What all of you have missed is the fact that Hartley Sound has had a leaking munitions ship in it since world war two and our lazy government has refused to deal with it. It has been ruining the shellfish factory across the sound. That fact is mentioned to disprove those that wish to dismiss the government and their turn a blind eye attitude toward most disasters. Secondly, whether we want to blame the government, old poorly maintained ships or sovereignty as important factors, there is another consideration out of everyone’s control. The west coast of BC is known as very treacherous waters. Rough Gale-like weather systems and rocky shores. Enbridge is just creating an accident waiting to happen. I am not against Oil pipelines as mush as 90 % of BC but I will bet your life and mine that there will be a few catastrophic disasters in the not too distant future just taking into account the shoreline and the weather. And “as long as the public doesn’t squawk too loud let’s let sleeping ships lie on the sea bottom” is a not too comforting attitude for our government to take.

Western3 – how many ships have been ‘recovered’ off the sea bottom once completely submerged? Worldwide that is, not just Canada?

It is enough to pump the fuel out of the tanks of a sunken vessel if seepage into the waters is a continuing problem. No need to raise the whole vessel.