Frequently Asked Questions

Before the Dead the Boat Disposal Society was created, John and Wesley Roe's family and friends founded The Veins of Life Watershed Society in 1995, in order to restore and clean up the Gorge Waterway Watershed, from the top of the Colquitz and Craigflower Creek, Upper and Inner Victoria Harbour to Victoria Harbour Ogden Point.

In 2017  after a number of years of Cadboro Bay Residents Association, Eric Dahli tried to dispose of numerous abandoned vessels and debris polluting their shores. We formed the Dead Boats Society to legally seize and dispose of 17 boats and a lot of marine debris.

Later in 2017/18, Our Canadian Federal Transport Canada created the Abandoned Boats Program, The Dead Boats Disposal Society was created in preparation for application to this fund.

Veins of Life Watershed Society has been working with the Ralmax Group of Companies since its beginning, this program was a natural fit as Ralmax Group of Companies is in Partnership with The Songhees and Esquimalt Nation with a company called the Salish Sea Industrial Services, a perfect fit they have all equipment, expertise and toys for Big Girls and Boys for removal of lots of Dead Boats and marine debris from British Columbia shoreline.

Research, Education, Inventory, Removal, Assessment, Remediation, Disposal of Dead Boats and Marine Debris, from our shores in British Columbia, Canada. The goal is to establish a healthy and sustainable environment in which watersheds support fish and wildlife.

Dead Boats Begone.

Find, locate, and document, using imagery and database. Assessment of both environment and debris, file all permitting and legal documents, obtain permissions if needed on private properties and leases, oversight and document appropriate environment removal, and work with the Salish Sea on-site plan, removal, cleanup and disposal.

The first step is to contact the Canadian Coast Guard: Wrecked, abandoned and hazardous vessels in British Columbia Toll-free: 1-800-889-8852 and obtain a file number. Then you can report a dead boat by submitting information through our Report an Issue form.

Please donate - working in the marine environment is a very expensive process and everything helps.

Our biggest need is information Where are these Dead Boats and Marine Debris? We call out to fellow boaters, kayak and canoe groups, community groups, and First Nations, to report to us (see report page).

No, we document, assess and take it all. This includes Ghost Gear, tires, batteries, foam, old rotten docks, barges, tons and tons of plastics, kitchen sinks, old float homes, and even the occasional Grand Piano. When we got started in Gorge Waterway in 1995 we removed thousands of shopping carts and stacks and stacks of bicycles that were tossed off bridges, bottles, bottles and more bottles, cars, construction equipment, dozens of engine blocks and even have the occasional safe (empty of course ). The list goes on and on. We remove it all if it is human-made.

We are a non-profit organization. A majority of our work is volunteer-based and we spend hundreds of hours lobbying, grant writing, maintaining social media and finding Dead Boats & Marine Debris. When we partner up with Salish Sea Industrial Services we take a fee for service, some is paid out to staff, rent, phone and internet, boat, vehicle & liability insurance, lawyers and accountants but the majority goes back to equipment, maintenance and training.

Up to this point monies to the society come from family donations and time is volunteered.

• Cadboro Bay
• Gorge Waterway
• Sooke Harbour and Basin
• Esquimalt Harbour
• Tsawout First Nation
• Tsehum Harbour
• Port Browning
• Bedwell Harbour
• Saturna Island
• Brentwood Bay
• Prevost Island
• Montague Harbour
• Patricia Bay
• K’ómoks Harbour
• Cowichan Bay
• Jedediah Island
• Pender Island
• Sechelt
• Porpoise Bay
• Thetis Island
• Penelakut Island
• Penelakut Tribe

Working in

• K’ómoks Harbour
• Lasqueti Island
• Sechelt
• Porpoise Bay
• Jarvis Inlet
• Howe Sound
• qathet Regional District
• Gingolx Village Niska Territory
• Lady Smith
• Salt Spring Islands
• Islands Trust Area
• Broughton Archipelago  Mahmalillikullah First Nations
• Baynes Sound
• Deep Cove