Vol. 149, No. 26 — December 30, 2015

Registration

SOR/2015-247 December 11, 2015

PILOTAGE ACT

Regulations Amending the Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations

P.C. 2015-1271 December 11, 2015

RESOLUTION

Whereas the Pacific Pilotage Authority, pursuant to subsection 34(1) (see footnote a) of the Pilotage Act (see footnote b), published a copy of the proposed Regulations Amending the Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations, substantially in the annexed form, in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on June 6, 2015;

Therefore, the Pacific Pilotage Authority, pursuant to subsection 33(1) of the Pilotage Act (see footnote c), makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations.

Vancouver, July 16, 2015

STEFAN WOLOSZYN for Kevin Obermeyer
Chief Executive Officer
Pacific Pilotage Authority

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, pursuant to subsection 33(1) of the Pilotage Act (see footnote d), approves the annexed Regulations Amending the Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations, made by the Pacific Pilotage Authority.

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE PACIFIC PILOTAGE TARIFF REGULATIONS

AMENDMENTS

1. The Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations (see footnote 1) are amended by adding the following after section 12:

13. To recover the cost of purchasing a pilot boat for Pine Island, the charge set out in column 3 of Schedule 7 is payable on each occasion that a pilot boat or helicopter is used to embark or disembark a pilot at a location set out in column 1 of that Schedule.

2. Schedule 7 to the Regulations is replaced by the Schedule 7 set out in the schedule to these Regulations.

3. The portion of items 1 to 18 of Schedule 8 to the Regulations in column 5 is replaced by the following:

Item Column 5

Pine Island Charge ($)
1. 481
2. 546
3. 611
4. 676
5. 741
6. 806
7. 871
8. 936
9. 1,001
10. 1,066
11. 1,131
12. 1,196
13. 1,261
14. 1,326
15. 1,391
16. 1,456
17. 1,521
18. 1,586

COMING INTO FORCE

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

SCHEDULE
(Section 2)

SCHEDULE 7
(Sections 12 and 13)

PILOT BOAT AND HELICOPTER CHARGES
Item Column 1

Location		 Column 2

Charge ($)		 Column 3

Pilot Boat Charge ($)
1. Brotchie Ledge 378 60
2. Sand Heads 1,512 60
3. Triple Islands 2,020 60
4. Cape Beale 5,911 60
5. Pine Island 3,892 60
6. The entrance to Nanaimo Harbour 761 60
7. Prince Rupert Anchorages 8 and 9 528 60
8. Prince Rupert Anchorages 10 to 31 895 60

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

The Pacific Pilotage Authority (the Authority) has purchased a used pilot boat to service ship calls at Pine Island. The purchase of the pilot boat is included in the approved corporate plan and the associated capital loan is approved by the Minister of Finance. In order to recover the purchase costs of the pilot boat, an additional tariff for each pilot boarding and an adjustment to the fuel surcharge at Pine Island are needed.

Background

The Authority is a financially autonomous Crown corporation listed in Schedule III to the Financial Administration Act whose role is to establish, operate, maintain and administer in the interest of safety an efficient pilotage service within all coastal waters of the west coast of Canada, including the Fraser River. Section 33 of the Pilotage Act allows the Authority to prescribe tariffs of pilotage charges that are fair and reasonable to permit the Authority to operate on a self-sustaining financial basis.

The risks associated with safety for Pine Island assignments have become higher in recent years because the pilot boat catering to this area is now older than 40 years. The Authority determined that it was necessary to bring a newer pilot boat into this area to cater to pilot transfers. Consequently, the Authority purchased a 14-year-old pilot boat (called the Pacific Chinook). A tariff now needs to be implemented to account for the cost of purchasing the pilot boat.

Objective

The Authority’s objective is to ensure that it continues to safely operate on a self-sustaining financial basis.

Description

The Authority implements a charge of $60 per pilot that embarks or disembarks using a pilot boat or helicopter. This charge is intended to recover the purchase costs of a used pilot boat. The charge will apply on each occasion that a pilot boat or helicopter is used to embark or disembark a pilot at one of the locations set out in the Regulations.

The Authority also adjusts the existing pilot boat fuel charges for Pine Island (reflected in Schedule 8 of the Pacific Pilotage Tariff Regulations) in order to reflect the higher fuel costs of a larger ship transiting Pine Island. The revised charge for the fuel surcharge will be as follow:

Item Column 1

Wholesale (rack) price for diesel in Vancouver, British Columbia (cents per litre)		 Column 5

Pine Island Charge ($)
1. up to 50.00 481
2. 50.01 to 60.00 546
3. 60.01 to 70.00 611
4. 70.01 to 80.00 676
5. 80.01 to 90.00 741
6. 90.01 to 100.00 806
7. 100.01 to 110.00 871
8. 110.01 to 120.00 936
9. 120.01 to 130.00 1,001
10. 130.01 to 140.00 1,066
11. 140.01 to 150.00 1,131
12. 150.01 to 160.00 1,196
13. 160.01 to 170.00 1,261
14. 170.01 to 180.00 1,326
15. 180.01 to 190.00 1,391
16. 190.01 to 200.00 1,456
17. 200.01 to 210.00 1,521
18. over 210.00 1,586

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this amendment, as there is no expected increase to compliance or administrative costs to business. The amendment is not for new regulations.

Small business lens

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

Consultation

The marine industry on the west coast of Canada is the key stakeholder impacted by this amendment. The Chamber of Shipping of British Columbia wrote a letter of support for the implementation of a $60 tariff on May 9, 2014. The Shipping Federation of Canada wrote a letter of support for the implementation of a $60 tariff on May 8, 2014. These two organizations represent all of the Authority’s customers.

As required under section 34 of the Pilotage Act, these amendments were published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on June 6, 2015, followed by a 30-day comment period to provide interested persons with the opportunity to make comments or to file a notice of objection with the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA). No comments were received and no notices of objection were filed.

Rationale

The primary business activity of the Authority is to provide a safe and efficient pilotage service. The Authority charges the user, or the customer, for the service. An ideal performance would be one in which the service provided was completely safe, i.e. without shipping incidents, and without injury or damage to individuals, ships, port facilities, or the environment. Historically, the Authority has maintained a low level of shipping incidents; however, it is recognized that the Authority has the inherent risks associated with the business, and that the potential for an accident is always present. This pilot boat, which is approximately 14 years old, will be deployed to Pine Island, an area which has been catered to by a 40-year-old pilot boat. The operation of this pilot boat from Pine Island will reduce the safety risks of operating an older pilot boat in this area. Purchasing this 14-year-old pilot boat, for approximately CAN$3.3 million, has allowed the Authority to avoid having to purchase a new pilot boat at an approximate cost of CAN$5 million.

The charge is being brought into line with the Triple Islands charge. The sister pilot boat to the Pacific Chinook is based in Prince Rupert and runs the Triple Islands route. The distance to Triple Islands is about the same as to Pine Island.

Based on assignment volumes remaining consistent, the Authority expects to collect approximately $491K per year for the next eight years, at which time the tariff will be repealed (as the purchase costs of the pilot boat will be fully recovered).

The Authority has historically paid for pilot boats (owned or not) using a charge levied across all pilot boats so that the industry collectively pays for the new pilot boat. The rationale is financial in nature, as the charges necessary to recover the cost of a pilot boat at one location would be financially overwhelming for users of that location. Consequently, the industry collectively bands together to pay down the costs of these large capital purchases. The rationale for also charging a fee for helicopter launches is that helicopter assignments will offset pilot boat assignments, but the industry understands that the purchase costs of the pilot boat will need to be recovered, regardless of the ratio of pilot boat to helicopter assignments.

Contact

Stefan Woloszyn
Director
Finance and Administration
ATIP Coordinator
1000–1130 West Pender Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6E 4A4
Telephone: 604-666-6988
Fax: 604-666-1647
Email: swoloszyn@ppa.gc.ca
Web site: www.ppa.gc.ca