Who is responsible for responding to oil spills off Canada’s coasts?
While Transport Canada is the lead federal agency responsible for Canada’s Marine Oil Spill Preparedness and Response Regime, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, namely the Canadian Coast Guard, is responsible for managing responses to ship source oil spills and for ensuring that the response is appropriate. Certain vessels and oil handling facilities are required to have emergency plans and to implement these plans in the event of a spill.
