Vancouver Park Board to debate jet ski ban in Burrard Inlet

The motion, submitted by Commissioner Tom Digby at the May 25 regular meeting and scheduled for debate June 1, calls on the board to formally adopt a policy opposing high-speed motorized personal watercraft in Burrard Inlet and the near-shore waters surrounding Vancouver’s parks and beaches.

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If passed, the motion would direct Park Board staff to report back on what tools the board has within its own jurisdiction to discourage or restrict jet ski use — including signage, public education, launch conditions, and potential policy or permit changes at board-managed facilities. The board chair would also be directed to lobby Transport Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, and the Vancouver Police Department’s Marine Unit for tougher federal and regional regulation.

The motion cites a marked increase in cetacean sightings in Burrard Inlet in recent years, including orca, humpback, and grey whales, and points to scientific concern over the effects of high-speed watercraft on marine mammals through noise pollution, wake disturbance, and the risk of direct collision. A whale strike incident in B.C. waters on May 4 is noted as having sharpened public awareness of those risks.

Jet skis and Sea Doos, the motion argues, are uniquely able to reach shallow near-shore areas and intertidal zones that are increasingly being managed for biodiversity recovery, eelgrass protection, and habitat restoration — making them a particular concern compared to other recreational watercraft.

The motion also points to noise and safety complaints near swimming beaches and shoreline parks, and notes that jurisdictions including Sydney, Washington State, Hawaii, Toronto, and Quebec have already introduced exclusion zones, speed limits, or enhanced enforcement targeting personal watercraft.

The board’s existing on-water policy, approved in 2019, focuses primarily on non-motorized recreation and does not address motorized personal watercraft, the motion notes.

The motion also calls on senior governments to designate Burrard Inlet as an urban marine conservation and stewardship zone, recognizing its growing ecological and educational significance.