Minimum Impact Standards
The coastal ecosystems of Canada
are rich in biodiversity. As leaders in a popular and growing
activity we must take steps to minimize our impact on these areas.
This set of Minimum Impact Standards provides a basis for environmentally
sensitive travel by kayak.
Etiquette
1. Keep unnecessary noise levels
at a minimum at campsites, on trails and on the water.
2. Whenever practical, coordinate
camp destinations with other parties in advance and find another
site if one is already occupied.
3. Store gear neatly when on shore,
i.e. keep a tidy campsite.
4. Co-operate and communicate in
a friendly and professional manner with other operators or parties.
5. Bathe in streams at the mouth,
not upstream or near drinking water sources.
Wildlife
1. Without compromising group safety,
while in the proximity of wildlife we will conduct ourselves in
a manner that does not disturb or alter their natural behavior.
2. We will not allow clients to
approach rookeries or haul-outs so as to cause the animals to
dive into the water.
3. We will not have low fly-overs
by aircraft above rookeries or haul-outs.
4. We will not permit feeding of
wildlife or close approaches to them.
5. We will store our food away from
tents sites and hang our food in a cache when the camp is not
occupied.
6. We will not set our tents on
bear trails.
7. We will keep each other informed
about sites where bears and people have had problems.
8. We will ensure that we are familiar
with wildlife concerns in the various areas where we work.
Seafood
1. In addition to observing all
fishing regulations we will limit our catch to what we can eat
during the trip.
2. We will not harvest purple-hinged
rock scallops.
3. We will ensure that our clients
who wish to fish possess a valid fishing license.
Camping
1. We will leave campsites as clean as
or cleaner than when we arrived.
2. We will dismantle any structures
that we have built before moving camp.
3. We will use only driftwood in
our fires. We will build fires below the high tide mark and away from large quantities of driftwood
that might catch fire.
We will try to limit the amount
of wood put on a fire so as not to leave large pieces of charred wood.
4. Where a fire pit is already established
we will use it rather than build a new one.
5. We will not light fires on the
forest floor.
6. We will, where practical, use
the intertidal zone for defecating. Where this is not possible
we will dig a pit toilet. In either situation we will ensure
that all toilet paper and sanitary napkins are burned or packed
out.