Vancouver Park Board considers limiting jet skis in English Bay

A park board commissioner tells 1130 NewsRadio that the board is debating whether to introduce a motion limiting jet ski access in English Bay.

The push comes after a Jet Skier collided with a whale in the waters near Vancouver’s Stanley Park on Monday.

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A video of the incident shows that the whale suddenly crests the water’s surface to breathe as the Jet Skier approaches at high speed, slamming into the animal’s back and flying off the vehicle.

Commissioner Tom Digby says that the incident stirred up concerns around water safety, for humans and animals alike.

“The commissioners, many of them are outraged at hearing what happened,” he told 1130 NewsRadio.

The federal Department of Fisheries has launched an investigation into the incident.

The board is now questioning whether jet ski rental companies pay enough attention to the rules and advise their customers thoroughly about what to do when encountering whales and other marine wildlife.

“You have to stay 100 meters away from any identified whales; you can only go 10 kilometres an hour when you are within 30 meters of the shoreline,” Digby said, mentioning examples.

“We want to make sure that any rental agencies are definitely enforcing those and making the users fully aware of what those rules are.”

He says that many of those rules are difficult to enforce and adds that there are also safety issues around jet skis being used too close to swimming areas, such as along Spanish Banks.

Increased marine wildlife in Burrard Inlet

According to Digby, the presence of whales and other animals has increased in English Bay, which requires water sport users to become more careful.

“I also see the starfish are coming back after years of absence. So, we are getting more and more life in our harbours, and I think the boat traffic and the jet skis are going to have to correspondingly improve their behaviour in order to be authorized there.”

He admits that a local park board does not have much power in the harbour as it is officially under the jurisdiction of Transport Canada and the Coast Guard.

However, the shoreline is administered by the park board.  

“A lot of those rentals and ownership facilities and launch ramps are on Park Board property, and we are thinking about increasing restrictions,” Digby explained.

The earliest opportunity for commissioners to vote on such a motion is June 1, the next scheduled meeting.

Petion calls for ban

Advocates in favour of a ban started two online petitions in the last few days.

Deborah Katz Henriquez, the author of one petition, says that her plea goes beyond whale safety and also includes requiring boaters to take whale awareness courses, increasing the distance boaters need to maintain from whales, and creating mandatory slow zones in whale-feeding and high-recreation areas to protect marine and land mammals alike.

She adds that jet skis contribute to noise and water pollution and pose a danger to wildlife.

A second petition, posted online by members of the group ‘Protect Whales’, is calling on local governments to prioritize marine wildlife over profit.

“To preserve the unique natural beauty and ecological integrity of English Bay, it is imperative that we take immediate action to ban jet skis from this environmentally sensitive area,” the petition read.

“They also infringe upon our community’s right to experience peaceful enjoyment of public spaces.”

Protect Whales asks signatories to contact jet ski rental places to express their concern.

Both petitions have garnered more than 5,400 signatures as of Monday, 1 p.m.

– With files from Jack Rabb.