Face of Nation : As Captain Aaron Nagler sets out onto the water, his boat navigates through a harbour full of vessels, from kayaks and sea ferries to sailing yachts.
Past the waters around Granville Island, in the heart of Vancouver, Nagler cruises by much larger ships hauling grain and coal, and another vessel filled with shipping containers. Beyond all the traffic, the horizon opens up as the engine pushes the boat further away from the coast.
“There have been a number of recent reports from this afternoon of a certain black and white species up in Howe Sound,” Nagler says over the speakers. “Just keep a lookout on all sides, and if anything catches your eye, go ahead and let us know.”
About an hour after departing the harbour, he peers into the distance, transfixed by something out on the open water. Without diverting his glance, he grabs the binoculars by his side.
Nagler has found what his 67 passengers were looking for. Whales. Passengers scramble to one side of the Prince of Whales Whale Watching boat and begin to snap pictures and videos.
These killer whales are iconic animals people travel around the world to see, and they’re a big part of Indigenous culture. They are also part of a complex — and intense — discussion about the future of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.
Construction of the pipeline is currently limited to its West Coast terminals, but activity should ramp up in and around Edmonton next month. The expansion is expected to be completed by mid-2022, and once finished, it will transport oil and other petroleum products from Edmonton to the Vancouver area.
Whichever federal party forms government after next month’s election will have to handle the project, which is estimated to cost between $7.4 billion and $9.3 billion to construct. The next government will also have to navigate some choppy waters, weighing issues such as economic growth, climate change, environmental protection and Indigenous rights.
Western Canada relies heavily on B.C.’s ports. In Vancouver, the talk is largely focused on what an increase in oil tankers might mean for the ocean, the shipping industry and the killer whales and other marine life.
But the fact is, regardless of whether the Trans Mountain expansion pipeline is built, just about every type of vessel is increasing in numbers here — including whale-watching boats.
On this trip, Nagler and his passengers see an adult male and female killer whale, along with two young whales. These are transient killer whales, which come to the surface for about 30 seconds every five minutes or so. Nagler’s boat stays between 200 and 400 metres away from this particular pod.
“Occasionally, boats will get too close to whales. It does happen, I’ve done it myself,” said Nagler. “It’s difficult to track animals that disappear underwater and come up somewhere else. They can quite often change direction. That’s why you have to keep your speed down and be as cautious as possible.”
While the whale-watching industry hasn’t always had the best reputation for looking out for the animals, Nagler recounts stories of people on jet skis getting right up to the killer whales.
“You can get off a plane in Vancouver at YVR [the international airport] and be harassing a killer whale within an hour and a half,” he said. While there can be finger-pointing about which type of vessels cause the most harm, it’s not the whale-watching boats or jet skis attracting the most attention in recent years. It’s oil tankers.
Similar to how the Keystone XL pipeline has been a lightning rod for the climate change debate in the U.S., the Trans Mountain expansion has galvanized those concerned about the killer whales and other marine life.
The Trans Mountain expansion is expected to result in a seven-fold increase in the number of oil tankers traveling through the waters around Vancouver and Victoria as they transport oil to California, China and other foreign buyers.
“Indigenous people are not going to stand idly by and watch the destruction of the killer whale populations along the West Coast of British Columbia,” said Grand Chief Stewart Phillip with the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, after the NEB’s report was issued.
Phillip said it’s “inconceivable” that “economic interests are more important than the iconic killer whale population and everything that represents for Indigenous peoples.” (The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, the Squamish Nation and the Tsleil-Waututh Nation were unavailable for comment for this story.)
The NEB introduced 16 new recommendations designed to better protect marine life on the B.C. coast, such as possible slowdowns in certain shipping routes and noise reduction on ferries. The recommendations are for all marine vessels, since the NEB said there would be little effect if the measures only applied to tankers from the Trans Mountain project. NEB had considered other measures, such as limiting the number of whale-watching boats and the amount of time they spend on the water.
Trans Mountain has said it typically loads five tankers per month, but the expanded system would require about 34 tankers per month. Trans Mountain tanker traffic would increase from 1.1 per cent of total marine traffic volume now in the Juan de Fuca Strait — which stretches from Victoria to the outlet of the Pacific Ocean — to 6.6 per cent.
In total, about 18,500 vessels traveled in the Juan de Fuca Strait in 2012, according to figures Trans Mountain supplied to the federal government.
