In Canada, around 40 per cent of boating fatalities are linked to alcohol. Although some provinces experience the issue more acutely – impaired boating causes 70 per cent of all boating deaths in Manitoba – this is clearly a serious, ongoing issue across the country. Each summer, law enforcement and boating accident lawyers respond to hundreds of reports of deaths and injuries on Ontario’s waterways, which is why the Canadian Safe Boating Council (CSBC) launched Operation Dry Water, a national safety campaign, in 2013.
Operation Dry Water combines advocacy and public messaging with a surge in marine law enforcement to emphasize the dangers of boating while intoxicated. The 2017 version of the event took place during the first weekend of August.
“We want to remind the public that alcohol consumption can result in a criminal charge, but it can also potentially lead to a highly preventable drowning death,” said John Gullick, Chair of the CSBC, in a press release earlier this summer. “The CSBC, its partners and sponsors would like, through this and our other initiatives, to raise attention to the problem of boating under the influence and to remind boaters not to drink and boat.”
Advocacy groups like MAAD, aggressive public messaging, and stronger road safety laws caused drunk driving rates in Canada to plummet since the mid-1980s. On the waterways, however, alcohol impairment has remained relatively common, despite similar tactics. The legal blood alcohol limit for boaters is .08, just as it is for drivers, and if a boater exceeds that limit, they can be charged with impaired operation of a vessel under the federal Criminal Code. They also leave themselves susceptible to civil action initiated by injury victims and boating accident lawyers.
In 2005, the Province of Ontario passed Bill 209 amending the Highway Traffic Act to place impaired boating and impaired driving on a level playing field. Today, an Ontarian who is found boating with a blood alcohol level over .05 could have their driver’s license immediately suspended. If you’re convicted of boating over .08, your license could be suspended for a year or more.
The end goal of Operation Dry Water is not to punish Ontarians, of course, but to enable a safer and more recreational boating environment for everyone. Through consistent public messaging and continued law enforcement, this goal may well be achievable.
If you or a member of your family has been injured in a boating accident this summer, contact Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers’ team of experienced boating accident lawyers to learn how we can help.
Greg Neinstein
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