His photo of the little boat pulling what could be described as “an apartment building on its side” presents a striking example of how a lack of effective regulation in Canada’s tugboat industry has contributed to unsafe practices on B.C. waterways, said Jason Woods, president of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Local 400.
The union is calling for stronger federal laws, particularly for vessels under 15 gross tons, which are exempt from annual inspections and are not required to be operated under a safety management system, or SMS.
Woods said that by not inspecting small tugboats, Transport Canada has created an economic incentive for companies to compromise safety by using a small tug to tow a large barge because it costs less and allows them to underbid competitors for contracts.
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