The Towboat reserves were put in place at the request of the Council of Marine Carriers (CMC) to protect harbours along the BC Coast to ensure harbours of refuge (temporary shelter during inclement weather or when waiting for favorable tides) remained available for commercial marine traffic - eg. tugs towing booms and barges up and down the coast. These harbours needed to be of adequate size, be located along commercial navigation routes and provide adequate shelter to accommodate the tug and the load being towed. Certain harbours were identified as critical harbours because they meet the size, location and shelter criteria required. To ensure the harbour remains available as a harbour refuge, shoreline development is restrained and commercial traffic is provided priority anchorage. The towboat reserves do not appear on Marine Charts. Some reserves include some shoreline development such as jetties and wharfs. Reserve use is variable with some sites being used only occasionally but all sites are important to maintaining safe navigation and ensuring adequate refuge for commercial marine traffic.Towboat reserves are commonly used by tug and barge traffic under the direction of the Council of Marine Carriers (CMC). All reserves mapped continue to be used although sites in remote regions are used only intermittently. CMC has advised that all existing towboat reserves are required to maintain adequate safe harbours for current levels of commercial marine traffic (2006).
