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Letter to Transport Canada May regarding proposed Boating restrictions on Windermere and Columbia Lake

  • May 7
  • 6 min read

Columbia and Windermere Valley Property Owners Society (CWVPOS)

May 7, 2026

The Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport

Transport Canada

Tower C, Place de Ville, 330 Sparks Street

Ottawa, Ontario

K1A 0N5


Dear Minister MacKinnon:

Proposed Vessel Operation Restrictions on Lake Windermere and Columbia Lake

We are the Columbia and Windermere Valley Property Owners Society (the “Society”), a society representing private property landowners and leaseholders within the area surrounding Lake Windermere and Columbia Lake (the “Lakes”).

It has come to our attention that Transport Canada has allegedly approved ʔakisq̓nuk First Nation (“ʔakisq̓nuk”) to apply for Vessel Operation Restriction Regulations (“VORRs”) on the Lakes (the “Proposed VORRs”). According to ʔakisq̓nuk’s 2025 Annual Report (the “ʔakisq̓nuk Report”), the Proposed VORRs will restrict “wake mode” operation on the Lakes. A copy of the ʔakisq̓nuk Report is attached hereto as Appendix “A”.

If implemented, the Proposed VORRs will directly and materially affect our members’ use and enjoyment of the Lakes, amongst other material environmental, social and financial impacts to the communities at large. Despite this, our members have received no information regarding the Proposed VORRs from Transport Canada or ʔakisq̓nuk, nor has any forum been provided for their input. Consequently, the Society is concerned that the process for the Proposed VORRs is advancing without any consultation with our members, who are homeowners, taxpayers, employers, employees, families, longstanding members of the surrounding communities and frequent commercial and recreational users of the Lakes.

Accordingly, the Society requests that Transport Canada commit to ensuring the process for the Proposed VORRs is transparent and open, including by taking concrete steps, detailed within this letter, to provide all affected parties with the necessary information, a meaningful forum to be heard and an equal role in the process.


The Proposed VORRs

The ʔakisq̓nuk Report claims that ʔakisq̓nuk is pursuing the Proposed VORRs to restrict wake mode operation on the Lakes. The stated purpose of the Proposed VORRs is to protect shallow ecosystems from deep wave action, which ʔakisq̓nuk maintains stirs up sediment and harms aquatic life.

According to the ʔakisq̓nuk Report, ʔakisq̓nuk will act as the “Local Authority” regarding the Proposed VORRs. The ʔakisq̓nuk Report further states that ʔakisq̓nuk have completed the “Preliminary Assessments” and are preparing to engage the broader public in the spring of 2026.

Importantly, and which concerns the Society, this is the only information that our members have regarding the Proposed VORRs, which, if implemented, will affect our members’ use and enjoyment of the Lakes and potentially impact our members’ property values, amongst other impacts.


The Proposed VORRs Will Affect Society Members

The Proposed VORRs, as described in the ʔakisq̓nuk Report, implicate various stakeholders and users of the Lakes.

The Society’s membership encompasses a range of local community members, including residential landowners, businesses, marinas, resorts, strata organizations, and neighbourhood associations. Our members have established property rights in the lands surrounding the Lakes, and, as recreational and commercial users of the Lakes, would be subject to the Proposed VORRs.

Transport Canada’s guidelines for requesting VORRs (the “Guidelines”) [1] make clear that our members will be directly and materially affected by the Proposed VORRs. The Guidelines identify stakeholders that a local authority should consider consulting prior to applying for VORRs, including the following groups which represent our membership [2]:

  • Local residents and property owners

  • Local businesses (marina operators, boat rental companies, campground owners, etc.)

  • Shoreline residents

  • Local boat owners

  • Waterway users, including anglers (people who fish) and boaters

  • Seaplane owners

  • People from nearby communities and businesses who use the waterway

  • Various lake and boating associations

Implementation of the Proposed VORRs, including any restriction on wake mode operation on the Lakes, will directly and materially affect our members’ use and enjoyment of the Lakes. Examples of foreseeable social and economic impacts to the communities surrounding the Lakes as a result of the Proposed VORRs include: recreational users may face costs to replace or forego use of certain boating equipment and may be prohibited from engaging in certain recreational activities; business owners could experience a negative impact on the type and volume of work they attract during the limited boating season due to reduced allowable boating activities on the Lakes; tourism could be impacted due to limited lake access and activity constraints, detracting from the interest in visiting the communities surrounding the Lakes; and local employment could be harmed as a result of reduced tourism and business activity supported by lake based activities. Accordingly, the Proposed VORRs also have the potential to impact our members’ property values.


Concerning Lack of Communication on the Proposed VORRs

Given the direct and material impacts that any restriction on use of the Lakes would have on the Society’s members, the Proposed VORRs are a matter of direct concern, yet our members have received no communication from Transport Canada or ʔakisq̓nuk, nor has any forum been provided for their input.

The Guidelines make clear that Transport Canada must ensure the VORR process is modern, open and transparent [3]. Accordingly, Transport Canada requires public consultation before a formal VORR application is submitted, and “[e]veryone affected or likely to be affected must be given the opportunity to express their views and a chance to share feedback during consultations” [4]. The Guidelines also advise that stakeholders should be informed about consultation well in advance to afford them adequate time to prepare and meaningfully participate [5].

Considering this guidance, the lack of any communication from Transport Canada or ʔakisq̓nuk on the Proposed VORRs is concerning. Transport Canada has allegedly approved ʔakisq̓nuk’s Preliminary Assessments and granted ʔakisq̓nuk permission to proceed with a formal application. Despite this, we have no information regarding: (i) the status of the Proposed VORRs; (ii) the issue(s) the Proposed VORRs purport to address, and why these restrictions are necessary; (iii) details on the requested restrictions; (iv) whether impacts on the stakeholders and users of the Lakes were considered; and (v) what alternative solutions, if any, were considered prior to ʔakisq̓nuk pursuing the Proposed VORRs.

The Guidelines further advise that generally, all local authorities bordering the body of water over which a restriction is sought should support the proposed restriction and be part of its request [6]. Currently, the Society has no information whether ʔakisq̓nuk has sought or obtained the approval of additional local authorities surrounding the Lakes regarding the Proposed VORRs.

Moreover, our members have not received any communication on when or if they will be consulted on the Proposed VORRs. Such consultation is essential for stakeholders to provide perspective on, among other things, how they will be impacted and whether a ban on wake mode operation is a necessary or effective solution to the problem(s) the Proposed VORRs purport to remedy.

While ʔakisq̓nuk’s Proposed VORRs contain one perspective on how the Lakes should be protected and managed, there are various users and stakeholders of the Lakes whose views may differ. Accordingly, as reiterated in the Guidelines, comprehensive public consultation is necessary prior to submitting a formal application for the Proposed VORRs. To date, these views have not been sought out.

As frequent recreational and commercial users of the Lakes, our members must be granted a meaningful opportunity to provide input on any decisions that would restrict use of the Lakes, including the Proposed VORRs. Such participation is essential to an open and transparent regulatory process.


Request for an Open and Transparent VORR Process

Given the above, the Society requests that Transport Canada commit to ensuring that the process for the Proposed VORRs is transparent and open, including concrete steps to provide all affected parties with the necessary information and a meaningful forum to be heard and participate.

Specifically, the Society requests the following:

  1. Access to information: The Society requests information from Transport Canada on the status of the Proposed VORRs, including what, if anything, ʔakisq̓nuk has been approved for. The Society further requests copies of all documents that ʔakisq̓nuk has submitted to Transport Canada.

  2. Inclusion in discussions: Our members must be consulted by ʔakisq̓nuk before a formal application is submitted for the Proposed VORRs. This includes adequate notice of when consultations will occur, how consultations will proceed, and what issues consultations will address.

  3. Notification of decisions: If ʔakisq̓nuk submits a formal application for the Proposed VORRs, the Society requests a copy of any decision made by Transport Canada regarding such application together with the associated reasons. In addition, the Society requests a copy of any decision made by Transport Canada, with the associated reasons, prior to ʔakisq̓nuk submitting a formal application, including regarding any Preliminary Assessments.

We trust Transport Canada recognizes the importance of engaging all affected parties prior to implementing any VORRs. We thank you for your attention to this matter and look forward to your prompt response.


Sincerely,

J. Douglas Kay, President

Columbia and Windermere Valley Property Owners Society


Attachments

Appendix A — ʔakisq̓nuk First Nation 2025 Annual Report (attached to the original letter as supporting documentation).


cc:


Footnotes

  1. Transport Canada, Local Authorities’ Guide: Vessel Operation Restriction Regulations (TP 14350E) (“Guidelines”).

  2. Guidelines, p. 10.

  3. Guidelines, p. 6.

  4. Guidelines, pp. 10–13.

  5. Guidelines, pp. 10–11.

  6. Guidelines, p. 34.

 
 

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