Feds say 'no pollution' from capsized sailboat in Yellowknife Bay, despite concerns

A Yellowknife woman says she was concerned about the moored sailboat near a popular bird nesting area weeks before it capsized in Yellowknife Bay.

The Canadian Coast Guard says the boat has not released any pollutants andthe owner of the boat has been helpful in trying to rectify the situation.

Amanda Mallon said she noticed weeks ago that the boat was likely to capsize because of how it was moored, andshe felt like it was too close to the marsh near the shore.

"I've been around sailboats all my life and I know what a good mooring looks like and what it doesn't look like," she said, adding the boat looked top heavy.

In an email, Jeremy Hennessy, a spokesperson for the Canadian Coast Guardsaid on July 15, the agency received a report of a capsized vessel on Great Slave Lake, near Yellowknife.

"CCG suspects it capsized due to high winds in the area. There was nobody on board, and following an assessment, there has been no pollution from the capsized vessel," the email read.

Hennessy said the vessel remains in good condition and the coast guardis working with the vessel owner, "who is taking appropriate action to address the issue."

Mallon saidher main concern was for some nearby nesting grebes, a water bird, that she said had been in that area for years. She said when the sailboat started mooring in that area, the grebes left.

"They were displaced," she said.

She said she had followed up with government agencies to ask about the birds and the nearby boat, but was told the situation wasn't concerning. Mallon said she was told that grebes were birds that could handle the disruption.

Mallon said after hearing this, she dropped the subject, until the boat tipped over. She saidwhat concerns her is that the boatdisrupted nesting birds, which she feels is contrary to the N.W.T.Wildlife Act. There is a section in the act that prohibits anyone from disturbing the nest of a bird, unless licensed.

"It's designed to protect our birds, but apparently it's a judgment call," she said.

Mallonwonders if the jurisdiction of the boat complicated things as it wastechnically on commissioner's land, which is public land owned by the N.W.T.government.

Not a bird sanctuary, but a popular birding spot

On the N.W.T. spill listwebsite, the description saysthe capsized sailboat is near a bird sanctuary.

But Danica Hogan, a protected area specialist with the Canadian Wildlife Service, says that's actually a misconception as the only bird sanctuaries in the N.W.T. are in the InuvialuitSettlement Region.

"So while it's a popular birding spot in town, it's not officially designated as a protected area," she said.

Hogan said the area is full of different bird species including, grebes, gulls, ducks, warblers, black birdsand even the odd Arctic tern.

She said the boat mooring in that areashouldn't have too much of an impact on the birds, because they are choosing to live in an area close to humans.

"The birds there are also pretty accustomed to boats and people and lots of activities," she said, adding that the tipped boat likely wouldn't impact them too much as long as there are no pollutants coming from it.

"So, you know, while it might have posed a bit of a novel item in their environment that they might check out or kind of avoid for a while, itdoesn't seem like it's causing much of an issue for the birds at present moment."