Bill S-215,  An Act to Protect Heritage Lighthouses, was passed by Parliament in May 2008.  Passage of the bill was a milestone for heritage conservation in Canada and a triumph for the heritage movement.  S-215 was the seventh attempt, the first being introduced in the Senate in 2000. The new act will do several things:

• provide a means for the selection and designation of federal heritage lighthouses
• prevent the unauthorized alteration of federal heritage lighthouses
• require that designated federal heritage lighthouses be maintained in 
a manner consistent with accepted conservation standards
• facilitate the sale or transfer of federal heritage lighthouses in order 
to ensure the lighthouses’ public purpose

The act determines that there will be a clear process for the identification, maintenance and divestiture of federal lighthouses.  It ensures increased protection for lighthouses under federal ownership and care.  It also sets up new processes for public involvement:

• public nominations of lighthouses to be considered for heritage designation
• public consultation before alterations are made to heritage lighthouses
• public notice of lighthouses considered surplus to the federal government
• public notice of the transfer of a federal heritage lighthouse to a community
 group or municipality
• public meeting if a lighthouse is considered for sale to a private owner
• public notice and public meeting if a lighthouse is to be demolished

The legislation will not come into force for another two years.  This time will be used by the Minister of the Environment to develop the criteria for heritage lighthouse designation, as set out by the bill.  The Minister will be assisted by a new advisory council, also mandated by the legislation The Department of Fisheries and Oceans, which is responsible for federal lighthouses, is required in this same two-year period to identify facilities it deems to be surplus.  Communities will then have a further two years to petition the Minister for heritage designation of individual lighthouses, and propose community uses for any lighthouses considered surplus by DFO.

The Act, then, establishes a process to designate federal heritage lighthouses, and legislates that they will receive proper care and protection.  The need for the Act grew out of the process of automation that began in the 1970s which led to neglect and even destruction of some historic lighthouses.  Custodial departments had no mandate or means to deal with historic lighthouses.  This Act creates a new layer of protection and gives the powers and responsibilities to the Minister of Environment.

There are about 250 lighthouses across Canada, in all provinces except Alberta and Saskatchewan.  With fewer lighthouses going surplus out here, the west coast has been a little slower to get on the conservation bandwagon, but that may change now.  Senator Pat Carney has been a west coast champion for the bill from the beginning, and played a major role in the final achievement of success.  Recently retired, she continues to work for the cause as we move into the implementation phase.

FROM HBC QUARTERLY SUMMER 2008