Vol. 149, No. 12 — June 17, 2015

Registration

SOR/2015-134 June 5, 2015

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT ACT

Regulations Amending the Historic Canals Regulations (Miscellaneous Program)

P.C. 2015-762 June 4, 2015

Whereas the Governor in Council, pursuant to section 16 of the Department of Transport Act (see footnote a), deems the annexed Regulations Amending the Historic Canals Regulations (Miscellaneous Program) necessary for the management, maintenance, proper use and protection of historic canals;

Therefore, His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, pursuant to sections 16 and 17 of the Department of Transport Act, makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Historic Canals Regulations (Miscellaneous Program).

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE HISTORIC CANALS REGULATIONS (MISCELLANEOUS PROGRAM)

AMENDMENTS

1. (1) The definition “boater campground” in section 2 of the Historic Canals Regulations (see footnote 1) is repealed.

(2) The definition “historic canal” in section 2 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

“historic canal” means a canal set out in column I of Schedule I and includes the waters and any federal works or lands appertaining or incidental to the canal; (canal historique)

(3) Section 2 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:

“campground” means an area in a historic canal where the public is permitted to camp; (terrain de camping)

2. (1) The portion of paragraph 4(2)(b) of the English version of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(2) The portion of paragraph 4(2)(c) of the English version of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

3. The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 6:

6.1 (1) If the superintendent cancels a permit, the superintendent shall, as soon as feasible after making the decision, provide written notice of the cancellation, including reasons, to the permit holder.

(2) Any person whose permit has been cancelled may submit a written request for a review of that decision to the Chief Executive Officer of the Parks Canada Agency within 30 days after the date of the notice.

(3) The Chief Executive Officer shall, within 30 days after the day on which the request is received, complete the review and provide written notice of the decision, including reasons, to the person who requested it.

4. Paragraph 7(b) of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

5. Subsection 11(1) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “or” at the end of paragraph (b), by adding “or” at the end of paragraph (c) and by adding the following after paragraph (c):

6. Paragraph 13(3)(b) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

7. Paragraph 14(3)(a) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

8. Paragraph 16(3)(a) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

9. Paragraph 17(3)(a) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

10. Sections 19 and 20 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

19. (1) Subject to section 21, it is prohibited for any person to camp at a campground unless the person

(2) The superintendent may, on receipt of an application, issue a permit authorizing the applicant to camp at a campground if

(3) The permit shall specify the campground’s location and the period for which the permit is valid.

11. Paragraph 22(3)(a) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

12. Section 26 of the Regulations and the heading before it are repealed.

13. Section 30 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

30. Every person in charge of a vessel that is in a historic canal shall operate the vessel in a manner that ensures that its wake is minimized and that the vessel and its wake do not compromise the safety of persons or vessels or cause damage to the shoreline or to any vessel, works, equipment or object.

14. Subsection 33(2) of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) Le paragraphe (1) ne s’applique pas aux bâtiments qui peuvent passer en toute sécurité sous un pont tournant ou un pont levant en position fermée.

15. Subsection 34(3) of the Regulations is repealed.

16. Subsection 35(3) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(3) No person in charge of a vessel shall allow the vessel to pass through a lock of a historic canal unless the vessel is equipped in accordance with section 27.

17. Subsection 39(3) of the Regulations is repealed.

18. Subsection 45(3) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(3) A permit issued under subsection (2) shall specify the bridge on which, and the dates and times when, the applicant may operate the vehicle.

19. Subsection 48(1) of the Regulations is amended by adding “or” at the end of paragraph (b) and by repealing paragraph (c).

20. Sections 49 to 52 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

49. (1) The superintendent shall seize and detain, at the owner’s risk, any vessel or goods if the superintendent has reasonable grounds to believe that

(2) The superintendent shall, as soon as feasible after seizing the vessel or goods, inform, in writing, the owner and the person in whose possession they were at the time of the seizure of

(3) The superintendent shall release the seized and detained vessel or goods as soon as feasible after

(4) The superintendent shall, at the request of the person from whom the vessel or goods were seized and detained, allow that person or any person authorized by that person to examine, at any reasonable time, the vessel or goods.

SALE OF SEIZED VESSEL OR GOODS

50. (1) Subject to subsection (2), the superintendent shall sell any vessel or goods seized and detained under subsection 49(1) if, within 30 days after the day on which the vessel or goods are seized,

(2) The owner of the seized and detained vessel or goods may, before they are sold, apply in writing to the Chief Executive Officer of the Parks Canada Agency for a review of the decision to seize and detain.

(3) The Chief Executive Officer shall, within 90 days after the day on which the application is received, make a decision and provide written notice of it, including reasons, to the owner.

PART VII
FINES

51. Every person who contravenes any provision of these Regulations is liable to a fine not exceeding $400.

21. The Regulations are amended by replacing “boater campground” with “campground” in the following provisions:

COMING INTO FORCE

22. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Background

The Historic Canals Regulations (HCR), (see footnote 2) made pursuant to sections 16 and 17 of the Department of Transport Act, govern the management, maintenance, proper use and protection of the nine historic canals administered by the Parks Canada Agency. The historic canals are St. Peter’s Canal in Nova Scotia; Saint-Ours, Chambly, Carillon, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue and Lachine canals in Quebec, and Rideau and Sault Ste. Marie canals and the Trent–Severn Waterway in Ontario.

The duties and functions of the Minister of Transport under the Department of Transport Act with respect to these historic canals were transferred to the Minister responsible for the Parks Canada Agency, currently the Minister of the Environment, when the control and management of the historic canals were transferred to Parks Canada between 1972 and 1979. Subsection 6(4) of the Parks Canada Agency Act confirms that Parks Canada is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the HCR.

The HCR apply to anyone in the historic canals and control various land-based and water-based activities, including dredging and filling, erecting signs or structures, organized events, and camping, as well as locking and mooring of vessels, primarily pleasure craft. These activities are managed and controlled under the HCR through prohibitions, restrictions and the issuance and cancellation of permits.

Issues and objectives

The Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations (SJCSR) reviewed the HCR in 2004 and identified the following issues:

The objectives of the amendments are to improve the legal clarity of, and to increase the transparency and the fairness of the provisions in, the HCR.

Description

To address the concerns raised by the SJCSR, the following amendments are made to the HCR:

  1. The SJCSR has expressed concern about the potential ambiguity of the term “historic canal lands” when used in relation to the control of fire and domestic animals on historic canal lands and the seizure and detention of abandoned property on such lands.
    The amendments clarify the definition of the term “historic canal” to convey that this includes both the waters and the appurtenant lands. This is consistent with the existing definition of “canal” in the Department of Transport Act.
  2. An administrative appeal mechanism is created for the cancellation of permits. Section 6.1 is added so that the superintendent of a historic canal is required to provide written notice outlining the reasons for the cancellation of the permit to the permit holder as soon as possible after making the decision. A person whose permit is cancelled is able to request a review of the superintendent’s decision by writing to the Chief Executive Officer within 30 days after receipt of the cancellation notice. The Chief Executive Officer must provide written notice of his or her decision (including justification) to the permit holder who requested the review within 30 days after receipt of the request.
  3. The SJCSR has noted a discrepancy between the English and French versions of section 20, which prevents the holder of a camping permit from applying for, or receiving, another camping permit until the first permit expires. Since it is not necessary to specify in regulation who is eligible to apply for a camping permit, this provision is repealed.
  4. Provisions in section 26 for the recovery of costs for extra services and in subsections 34(3) and 39(3) for the waiving of permit fees is repealed as obsolete. Fees pertaining to the use of historic canals are no longer established in the HCR, so the inclusion of these provisions is unnecessary.
  5. Paragraphs 35(3)(b) and (c), which placed conditions on the operation of vessels passing through a lock in a historic canal, is repealed. Section 28 prohibits the operation of a vessel in a historic canal in a manner that may damage a canal, endanger safety, or obstruct navigation. Given that the definition of a historic canal includes the canal locks, the provisions in paragraphs 35(3)(b) and (c) are redundant.
  6. Paragraph 48(1)(c), which authorized the superintendent to inspect vessels for compliance with the Small Vessel Regulations, is repealed. The SJCSR has noted that section 6 of the Small Vessel Regulations provides for the designation of peace officers for the purposes of those Regulations, including the powers to board and inspect vessels, making this provision in the HCR unnecessary.
  7. The SJCSR has expressed the view that the existing seizure and detention provisions exceed, in a number of places, the enabling authority found in subsection 17(1) of the Department of Transport Act. Sections 49 to 51 are therefore amended to align the scope of these provisions more closely with the Department of Transport Act, and to make the HCR consistent with seizure and detention provisions in other similar regulations, such as the St. Andrew’s Locks Regulations.
    Section 49 is amended to remove the superintendent’s authority to seize vehicles and equipment, and the obligation of the owners of things seized and detained to pay the expenses incurred by the superintendent in connection with the seizure and detention. The superintendent is required to provide an estimate of the cost of repairing any damage to the historic canal, in addition to the existing requirement to provide a rationale for the seizure and the location at which the vessel or goods are detained. This notification is now given to both the owner and the person in charge of the vessel or goods at the time of the seizure.
    Section 50 is repealed. This provision, which allowed the superintendent to seize and detain any vessel, vehicle, equipment, goods, structure or other thing sunk, grounded, or otherwise abandoned in a historic canal, is replaced in part by the addition to the HCR of paragraph 11(1)(d), which prohibits the discarding or abandonment of anything in a historic canal.
    Section 51 is replaced with a new section 50, which removes the authority to sell a thing seized if the owner fails to pay the expenses incurred to affect the seizure, and broadens the grounds for appeal to include any of the reasons for seizure and detention found in section 49.
  8. A redundancy between the Department of Transport Act and the HCR is eliminated by removing the words “guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction and” from section 52 of the HCR. Since the creation of this offence is implicit in the Department of Transport Act, the provision is not necessary in the HCR.
  9. In addition, a number of minor changes are made to address discrepancies between the French and English versions of the HCR. In some cases the English version is amended to reflect the French version, and vice versa. For example, the English text is revised in six instances from “the times” to “the dates and times,” in order to reflect the French wording “les dates et les heures.” In paragraph 7(b), the phrase “la sécurité publique” is changed to “la sécurité de quiconque” for consistency with the English wording “the safety of any person.” In section 30, both the English and French versions are amended to clarify the intent of the original provision.

These nine amendments have no substantive effect on the legal functions of the HCR.

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this proposal, as there is no change in administrative costs to business.

Small business lens

The small business lens does not apply to this proposal, as there are no costs to small business.

Rationale

These nine amendments rectify a number of minor technical and administrative issues with the HCR, and respond to recommendations made by the SJCSR. They improve the legal clarity of the HCR, and do not impact Parks Canada’s operational costs.

Furthermore, the addition of an administrative appeal mechanism for the cancellation of permits and the broadening of the appeal process for seized property have minimal legal impact for Parks Canada. The appeal mechanism for cancelled permits is based on an existing process for business licences in national parks that was introduced in the National Parks of Canada Business Regulations in 2002. Very few appeals have been made under that process and it is expected that these amendments will likewise generate few appeals, as the number of permits cancelled each year on historic canals averages fewer than five per year.

Similarly, as seizures and detentions under the HCR are rare (averaging less than one per year), it is expected that the slight broadening of the grounds for appeal for seizures and detentions will not result in a significant increase in requests. These amendments benefit Canadians by increasing the transparency and the fairness of permit cancellation and the seizure of property under the HCR.

Contact

Martha Johnson
Manager
Policy, Legislative and Cabinet Affairs Branch
Strategy and Plans Directorate
Parks Canada Agency
30 Victoria Street, 4th Floor (PC-04-D)
Gatineau, Quebec
J8X 0B3
Telephone: 819-420-5194
Fax: 819-420-9120
Email: martha.johnson@pc.gc.ca