I'll try not to repeat Brad's comments too much about flare disposal, but hat's really what I'm here to talk about.

We are requesting that Transport Canada please provide funding for the safety education and flare disposal program to Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons, which was previously administered through CPS-ECP and is now called CanBoat/NautiSavoir across Canada in both official languages. There is no other Canada-wide program, and there are only a few local disposal options left.

As members of the boating industry, we are keenly aware of how many boaters are carrying both the pyrotechnic distress flares required by Transport Canada regulations as well as older flares that are now expired and potentially dangerous.

Pyrotechnic distress flares require proper disposal. In recent years, many disposal options through municipal waste management and other government agencies, like police and fire departments, have now been discontinued. Many people do not know how to dispose of their expired flares and therefore do so inappropriately.

The Transport Canada-funded Canadian Power and Sail Squadron's CanBoat distress flare collection and disposal program has been very successful. It was national in scope, in both English and French, and has collected over 200,000 of any brand of flare that boaters brought to a CPS-ECP CanBoat flare disposal event. Those events have been taking place since 2000. They were staffed by trained CanBoat volunteers and operated in concert with CIL Orion Explosives, which properly handles the actual disposal and funds 40% of the cost of that disposal.

Funding of these events under the boating safety contribution program was not renewed after 2022. Just FYI, the cost of disposing of an average recreational flare is about $2.50, and then shipping will add another $1.00 to $1.50 to that amount, so you can see how much it actually costs to dispose of these things.

We know that it's dangerous for municipal workers to find these discarded in household garbage. Environmentally, it's very dangerous, as well as illegal, for individuals to fire off flares unless there is a legitimate emergency. You can understand the environmental effect because, these flares, when they start to weep.... I mean, what you're talking about is an explosive, plain and simple. We had instances, which have been reported, in which workers actually had flares go off in their hands.

Again, for the sake of the safety of Canadian boaters nationwide, we ask that you please provide the funding to Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons—CanBoat/NautiSavoir—for this unique program. I say this respectfully as John Gullick.