Wrecked, abandoned, and hazardous vessels can create safety risks, pollute waterways, damage ecosystems, and affect coastal and waterfront communities across Canada.
Preventing vessel abandonment is a shared responsibility. Boat owners, communities, Indigenous partners, and governments all play a role in protecting Canada's waterways.
This page explains your responsibilities as a boat owner and how to report an abandoned or hazardous vessel. It also includes information about Canada’s abandoned boat laws and how Canada’s addressing this issue.
On this page
- I found an abandoned or hazardous vessel
- Abandoning a boat is against the law
- I want to salvage an abandoned boat or wreck
- I own a boat
- I need to dispose of a boat
- What Canada’s doing about abandoned and hazardous vessels
I found an abandoned or hazardous vessel
If you see an abandoned boat, derelict, wrecked or hazardous vessel, report it. Early reporting helps protect waterways, communities, and marine safety. Do not touch, move, or board the boat.
Here’s who to contact:
| Situation | Contact |
|---|---|
| Immediate danger to people | Call 911 |
| Pollution or public-health risk |
Call the Canadian Coast Guard:
|
| Interfering with or a danger to navigation |
Call Transport Canada: 1-833-351-4828 If the situation is urgent, call the Canadian Coast Guard’s 24-hour emergency line |
| Found a wreck and want to salvage it | Call Transport Canada: 1-833-351-4828 |
Abandoning a boat is against the law
The Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act is Canada’s main law for preventing vessels from being abandoned and dealing with abandoned and hazardous vessels. It makes it illegal for boat owners to abandon their boat or let it become a hazard or wreck. Boat owners are responsible for maintaining, repairing, and properly disposing of their vessels once they’re done with them.
Abandoned and derelict vessels can threaten marine safety, harm the environment, and impact local economies. The act helps prevent vessels from being abandoned and requires owners to take responsibility for their boats throughout their lifecycle.
Under Canadian law, it’s illegal to:
- abandon your boat
- neglect your boat to the point it becomes a hazard or wreck
- sink, strand, or ground your boat on purpose
- leave your damaged boat in the same spot for more than 60 continuous days without permission from the landowner
- leave your boat adrift for more than 48 hours without trying to secure it
- claim a wreck before reporting it to the Receiver of Wreck, unless:
- the wreck is in danger, and you need to act to keep it safe
- the Receiver of Wreck gives you permission to claim the wreck
- bring a wreck into the country from outside of Canadian waters without reporting it to the Receiver of Wreck
Fines
Abandoning a boat can be expensive.
If you abandon a vessel or allow it to become a wreck or hazard, you may be ordered to:
- remove the vessel
- repair the vessel
- pay for cleanup costs
- pay fines under the law
This can include fines ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 for a person and up to $250,000 for a business. In the most serious cases, where people or the environment are harmed, you could be prosecuted (brought before a judge) and may have to pay a fine of up to $1 million for a person and up to $6 million for a business.
Transport Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard both publish records to show what people and companies have been fined.
Problem vessels bulletin board
The bulletin board helps Transport Canada identify vessel owners and take action to address abandoned and hazardous vessels before they create bigger safety risks or more environmental damage.
If you own a boat listed on the bulletin board, or if you have more info about a boat on the list, contact your nearest regional office.
I want to salvage an abandoned boat or wreck
If you find a wrecked vessel, abandoned boat or derelict vessel, there are legal steps you must follow if you want to take possession of it. Finding an abandoned-looking boat does not automatically give you the right to keep it.
First, you must try to find and contact the owner. If you can’t find them, you must notify Transport Canada’s Receiver of Wreck. The Receiver of Wreck helps manage found wrecks and supports the legal process for claiming or salvaging them.
Learn more about the Receiver of Wreck program, including how to report a wreck you have found, how to claim a wreck, and what your responsibilities are.
I own a boat
Boat ownership comes with legal responsibilities.
As a boat owner, you’re responsible for your vessel throughout its lifecycle, including:
- keeping your vessel in good condition
- storing and securing it properly
- disposing of it responsibly when you’re done with it
Acting early can help prevent environmental damage, protect marine safety, and avoid costly enforcement actions.
Find out how to be a responsible boat owner.
I need to dispose of a boat
If you own an aging, damaged or unwanted boat, planning for disposal is one of the best ways to prevent vessel abandonment. Boat disposal and recycling services may vary depending on your province, municipality, and vessel type.
You can:
- sell the boat and properly transfer ownership
- donate it to a charity or community organization
- recycle it through a boat recycling or dismantling facility
- ask your local landfill if they accept old boats
- check with boat dealers about trade-in options
- contact marine salvage companies
Disposal and recycling options
If you’re searching for boat removal services, boat removal companies, derelict vessel removal or boat recycling options, these resources are a place to start:
- Province of British Columbia – Abandoned vessels in B.C.: Provincial information on abandoned vessels and boat disposal options
- Boating B.C. – Boat disposal: Practical public guidance, frequently asked questions, and disposal service listings for boat owners in British Columbia
- Dead Boats Disposal Society: A British Columbia-based non-profit organization focused on researching, assessing, removing, remediating, and disposing of abandoned boats and marine debris from coastal and inland waters
- Boating Ontario – Boat disposal: Practical guidance and a list of businesses that offer boat disposal, transport, salvage, recycling or related services in Ontario
- Marine Institute – Abandoned boats information pages: Useful public education resource based in Newfoundland and Labrador, with guidance on abandoned boats and removal processes
What Canada’s doing about abandoned and hazardous boats
Transport Canada is working with Indigenous Peoples, communities, and partners across Canada to prevent vessel abandonment, encourage people to comply with the law, and address abandoned and derelict vessels.
Through this work, we’re helping keep Canada's waterways clean, safe and open for navigation.
How we take action
Transport Canada helps address abandoned and hazardous vessels by:
- promoting responsible vessel ownership
- teaching vessel owners about their responsibilities
- investigating reports of problem vessels
- identifying and contacting vessel owners
- enforcing the law when owners fail to act
- taking action on vessels that pose navigation safety risks
When owners don’t meet their responsibilities, Canadian law gives Transport Canada the authority to step in.
Who’s responsible for what
Several federal organizations may respond to abandoned or hazardous vessels, depending on the situation.
Transport Canada
Responsibilities include:
- administering and enforcing the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act
- promoting responsible vessel ownership
- helping prevent vessel abandonment
- enforcing the law when vessel owners don’t meet their responsibilities
- working with partners to address problem vessels
Under the act, Transport Canada helps keep Canada's waterways safe and open for navigation by preventing vessel abandonment and enforcing owner responsibilities.
Canadian Coast Guard
Responsibilities include:
- responding to marine pollution incidents
- responding to vessels that pose a hazard
- activating environmental response operations
- providing emergency response to dangerous wrecks
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)
Through its Small Craft Harbours Abandoned and Wrecked Vessels Removal Program, Fisheries and Oceans Canada provides funding to assess, remove, and dispose of abandoned and wrecked vessels in federally owned small craft harbours.
Other partners
Depending on the situation, other organizations may also play a role, including municipalities, harbour authorities, provincial governments, Indigenous communities and organizations, marine salvage and environmental response organizations, and law enforcement agencies.
Related links
- How to report an abandoned boat or wreck
- What to do if you find a navigation hazard or wreck
- Contact the Canadian Coast Guard: Wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels
- Enforcing law on hazardous vessels
- National inventory of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels
- Navigation Protection Program – regional contact information
- Canadian Coast Guard: Hazardous vessels
- Receiver of Wreck: Overview
- Vessel of Concern Bulletin Board for the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act