Voluntary Protection Zone for Shipping, Western Shore Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands)
  
A Voluntary Protection Zone for Shipping on the western shore of Haida Gwaii has been in effect since  September 1, 2020. In the Voluntary Protection Zone, commercial vessels of 500 gross tonnage or greater are requested to observe a minimum distance of 50 nautical miles from the western shore West Coast of Haida Gwaii with the following exemptions:

•	Cruise vessels, which are asked to observe a minimum 12 nm distance from shore; 
•	Vessels transiting from Alaska to British Columbia or Washington State, or vice versa, through the Voluntary Protection Zone are asked to observe a distance of at least 25 nm from shore 
•	No minimum distance is requested for tugs and barges (including pushing and towing alongside) or vessels engaged in commercial fishing.
•	Vessels to which this bulletin applies are not required to observe requested minimum distances if doing so may compromise navigational, vessel, passenger or cargo safety.
 
 
For more information on the Voluntary Protection Zone project, visit haidagwaii-vpz.ca or see the  notice to mariners.
