GVHA supports activities and works together with the community in which we operate on environmental topics.

World Ocean Day

Since 2010, the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority has partnered with Eagle Wing Tours to co-host World Ocean Day and celebrate the important role of the ocean and Victoria’s working harbour. Annually, participants gather at Fisherman’s Wharf to enjoy a fun, free, family-friendly day and learn from a variety of conservation organizations from around the Salish Sea. This occurs the first week of June bringing an energetic end to Ocean Week Victoria.

Reef Balls

There are currently two reef balls located in the water near the public washrooms at Fisherman’s Wharf – you can see them on either side of the second ramp onto the wharf. Reef balls are artificial structures designed to mimic the habitat of coral reefs. They provide a hard substrate for marine organisms to settle and grow.

We are currently looking to add three more reef balls to the water near Fisherman’s Wharf with our partners World Fisheries Trust and Eagle Wing Tours.

Nature Monitoring Program

Nature in the Harbour is a program put together by Salmon in the City, World Fisheries Trust, and Bird Sanctuary. This program encourages people to report on fish, birds, and other wildlife in the water by taking a photo and recording the date, time, and location of observation in order to help understand what wildlife lives in the harbour and how if their numbers are thriving. This information can be sent to: Dorothy Chambers from Salmon in the City, Jesse/Yogi from World Fisheries Trust, and Jacques Siroir from Bird Sanctuary.

Nature in the Harbour wants to hear from you about:

  • Concentration of bird or sea mammals
  • Herring spawning
  • Herring balls and schools of other small fish (smelt or anchovies)
  • Dead or sick birds and other wildlife
  • Schools of juvenile herring, perch, and stickleback

Pacific Northwest to Alaska Green Corridor

Green corridors are maritime routes focused on accelerating the adoption of zero-emission fuels and technologies used in shipping. The Pacific Northwest to Alaska Green Corridor (PNW2AK) is a collaborative partnership between the major cruise lines, homeports, and several ports of call in the Alaska cruise market. This collaboration is exploring the possibility of alternative low- and zero- greenhouse gas (GHG) emission methods of cruising between Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska.

This initiative began in 2022 and the Project Charter between parties was signed in March 2023. The first feasibility study focused on Green Methanol in underway.

More information on PNW2AK Green Corridor can be found on the website of the Port of Seattle.