Navigation Safety Regulations, 2020 (SOR/2020-216)

Marginal note:Portable VHF handheld radio with DSC

• 223 (1) A portable VHF handheld radio capable of DSC must

  • (a) be capable of transmitting and receiving distress and safety alerts using DSC on frequency 156.525 MHz (channel 70);

  • (b) be capable of transmitting and receiving radiotelephony on

    • (i) the distress and safety frequency of 156.8 MHz (channel 16),

    • (ii) the primary inter-vessel safety communication frequency of 156.3 MHz (channel 6),

    • (iii) the bridge-to-bridge communication frequency of 156.65 MHz (channel 13),

    • (iv) the public correspondence frequency specifically assigned for the area in which the vessel is navigating, and

    • (v) any other VHF frequencies that are necessary for safety purposes in the area in which the vessel is navigating;

  • (c) be capable of receiving communications on

    • (i) a VHF frequency specifically assigned for the transmission of maritime safety information in the area in which the vessel is navigating, or

    • (ii) if no frequency is specifically assigned in the area in which the vessel is navigating, any other frequency used for transmitting maritime safety information;

  • (d) be certified as waterproof by the manufacturer;

  • (e) not be unduly affected by exposure to seawater, oil or the sun;

  • (f) be of robust mechanical construction;

  • (g) have an internal GNSS receiver capable of providing an accurate position within 90 seconds of being switched on, when provided with an unobstructed view of the sky; and

  • (h) be capable of six hours of operation, with a duty cycle of 10% transmitting, 10% receiving above squelch level and 80% receiving below squelch level.

• Marginal note:Rechargeable battery

  (2) A portable VHF handheld radio capable of DSC that is powered by a rechargeable battery must be accompanied by a device capable of fully charging the battery from empty within 10 hours.

Marginal note:Supplementary VHF radio

• 224 (1) Any supplementary VHF radio installation that a vessel is fitted with under section 205 must be functionally independent from the VHF radio installation required under section 204.

• Marginal note:Source of energy

  (2) The VHF radio installations referred to in subsection (1) may be connected to the main source of energy for the vessel, but one of them must have another source of energy that is located in the upper part of the vessel.

Marginal note:VHF radio antenna

225 The antenna of a VHF radio installation must be

• (a) capable of transmitting and receiving a vertically polarized signal;

• (b) installed as high as possible on a vessel and in such a manner as to provide an omnidirectional radiation pattern; and

• (c) connected to the radio installation by the shortest possible transmission line.

Marginal note:Battery-powered VHF radio

• 226 (1) If batteries are the main source of energy for a VHF radio installation on board a vessel, the batteries must

  • (a) be located in the upper part of the vessel;

  • (b) have sufficient capacity to operate the VHF radio installation; and

  • (c) be accompanied by a device capable of fully charging the batteries from empty within 10 hours.

• Marginal note:Exception to paragraph (1)(a)

  (2) If it is impracticable to locate the batteries in the upper part of a vessel whose construction began before June 1, 1978 or that is less than 20 m in length, they must be located as high in the hull as is possible.

Marginal note:MF/HF radio installations

227 An MF/HF radio installation’s transmitter on board a vessel must be capable of delivering 125 W peak envelope power at the output of the transmitter.

Marginal note:Beacon registration

• 228 (1) The authorized representative of a vessel, or in the case of a pleasure craft that is not a Canadian vessel, the owner of the vessel, must register an EPIRB or PLB with the Canadian Beacon Registry, which is maintained by the Department of National Defence.

• Marginal note:Updating the Canadian Beacon Registry

  (2) The authorized representative or the owner, as the case may be, must update the information contained in the Canadian Beacon Registry with respect to the registration within 30 days after a change in the information.

Marginal note:EPIRB and PLB — Type Approved

• 229 (1) Every EPIRB and PLB must be of a type approved by Cospas-Sarsat as meeting the requirements of standard C/S T.007 entitled Cospas-Sarsat 406 MHz Distress Beacons Type Approval Standard, published by Cospas-Sarsat.

• Marginal note:Type approval certificate

  (2) The type approval referred to in subsection (1) must be evidenced by a type approval certificate that is kept in a readily accessible location on board.

Marginal note:Replacing the automatic release mechanism — EPIRB

• 230 (1) The automatic release mechanism of an EPIRB must be marked with the replacement date determined by the manufacturer and be replaced on or before that date in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

• Marginal note:Replacing the battery — EPIRB and PLB

  (2) The battery of an EPIRB and the battery of a PLB must be replaced in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions

  • (a) after the use of the EPIRB or PLB in an emergency;

  • (b) after an inadvertent activation of the EPIRB or PLB;

  • (c) if required as a result of an inspection or testing of the EPIRB or PLB; and

  • (d) on or before the expiry date indicated on the battery.

Marginal note:Replacing the battery — SART

231 The battery of a SART must be replaced in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions on or before the expiry date indicated on the battery.

Marginal note:Battery — survival craft VHF radiotelephone

232 A battery used to power a survival craft VHF radiotelephone must

• (a) if the battery is non-rechargeable, be replaced, on or before the expiry date indicated on the battery; and

• (b) if the battery is rechargeable, be maintained in a fully charged condition while the vessel is at sea and the radiotelephone is not being used for communication purposes.

Marginal note:Search and rescue VHF radio direction-finding equipment

233 Search and rescue VHF radio direction-finding equipment must

• (a) be capable of receiving amplitude-modulated signals on frequency 121.5 MHz;

• (b) be capable of receiving frequency or phase-modulated signals on frequency 156.8 MHz (channel 16); and

• (c) provide an automatic indication-of-direction signal that is received when the source of the signal is located within an arc of 30° on either side of the vessel’s bow.

Marginal note:Reserve source of energy

• 234 (1) If a vessel is required to have a reserve source of energy under section 217, the reserve source must be capable of

  • (a) being used immediately in the event of a failure of the main source of electrical energy; and

  • (b) simultaneously operating

    • (i) the VHF radio installation,

    • (ii) the lighting required under paragraph 217(1)(b), and

    • (iii) the radio equipment that the vessel must be fitted with under paragraph 207(1)(b), in the case of a vessel referred in that paragraph.

• Marginal note:Capacity

  (2) The reserve source of energy must have a capacity to provide electrical energy for

  • (a) one hour, if the radio equipment is provided with an emergency source of electrical energy that meets the standards set out in TP 127, Ship Electrical Standards, published by the Department of Transport; and

  • (b) six hours, in any other case.

• Marginal note:Electrical capacity

  (3) The electrical capacity of the reserve source of energy under distress conditions must, for the period prescribed in subsection (2), be equal to the total of

  • (a) one half of the electrical capacity necessary for the transmission of communications,

  • (b) the electrical capacity necessary for the continuous reception of communications, and

  • (c) the electrical capacity necessary for the continuous operation of any additional radio equipment or lighting connected to that reserve source of energy.

• Marginal note:Independence

  (4) The reserve source of energy must be independent of the propelling power of the vessel and the vessel’s electrical system.

• Marginal note:Simultaneous supply

  (5) The reserve source of energy must, for the period prescribed by subsection (2), be capable of

  • (a) simultaneously supplying energy to all radio installations that can be connected to the reserve source of energy at the same time; or

  • (b) if only one radio installation can be connected to the reserve source of energy at the same time as a VHF radio installation, supplying energy to the radio installation that uses the most power.

• Marginal note:Electrical lighting

  (6) The reserve source of energy must be used to supply the electrical lighting for a radio installation unless the electrical lighting has an independent source of energy that meets the capacity requirements set out in subsection (2).

Marginal note:Reserve source of energy — rechargeable batteries

• 235 (1) If the reserve source of energy consists of rechargeable batteries, a vessel must have

  • (a) a means of recharging the batteries from empty to the minimum capacity required within 10 hours; or

  • (b) for a vessel that is less than 20 m in length, a reserve battery of a capacity sufficient for the duration of the voyage.

• Marginal note:Installation of rechargeable batteries

  (2) Rechargeable batteries that constitute the reserve source of energy for a radio installation must be installed so that they

  • (a) are maintained at all times at the temperature specified by the manufacturer of the batteries; and

  • (b) provide, when fully charged, the minimum number of hours of operation required by subsection 234(2), regardless of meteorological conditions.

• Marginal note:Failure of electrical energy source

  (3) If a radio installation requires an uninterrupted input of data from the vessel’s GNSS receiver in order to function properly, the radio installation must have a means to ensure that uninterrupted input of data in the event of a failure of the vessel’s main or emergency source of electrical energy.

Marginal note:Assessments and tests before a voyage

236 A radio operator must ensure that the radio equipment is in proper operating condition before the vessel embarks on a voyage.

Marginal note:Assessment of radio installation at sea

• 237 (1) While a vessel is at sea, a radio operator must assess

  • (a) daily the operating condition of a radio installation; and

  • (b) subject to subsection (2), in the case of a VHF radio installation, MF radio installation or MF/HF radio installation, weekly by means of normal communications or a test call carried out within the communication range of either a radio installation or a coast station that is capable of DSC, the operating condition of the radio installation.

• Marginal note:Test call

  (2) When a vessel has been out of the communication range of a radio installation or a coast station that is capable of DSC for longer than a week, a radio operator must make the test call at the first opportunity after the vessel is within the communication range of a coast station in order to assess the operating condition of the radio installation.

• Marginal note:Testing transmitter functioning

  (3) A radio operator must, when testing the operating condition of a radio installation transmitter, use the antenna normally used for the transmitter.

• Marginal note:Restoring to proper functioning

  (4) If an assessment referred to in subsection (1) or (2) indicates that the radio equipment or the reserve source of energy is not operating properly, the equipment or source of energy must be restored to its proper operating condition without delay.

• Marginal note:Out-of-service radio installation

  (5) If a radio installation is out-of-service for more than 30 days, a radio operator must verify, within the seven days before the vessel embarks on a voyage, that the radio equipment is in proper operating condition and must enter that information in the radio log.