Wellers Bay National Wildlife Area Management Plan: chapter 8

7 Health and safety

All reasonable efforts will be made to protect the health and safety of the public, including adequately informing authorized visitors of any known or anticipated hazards or risks. Authorized visitors (including researchers and contractors) must make all reasonable efforts to inform themselves of risks and hazards and must be prepared and self-sufficient. Natural areas contain some inherent dangers, and proper precautions must be taken by visitors, recognizing that Environment and Climate Change Canada staff neither regularly patrol, nor offer services for visitor safety in National Wildlife Areas (NWAs).

Public access to the Wellers Bay NWA is prohibited. Thus, ECCC- Canadian Wildlife Services (CWS) and Department of National Defence (DND) take precautions to inform the public of the public health and safety risks due to Unexploded Explosive Ordnance (UXO) on the site, and the Wildlife Area Regulations of the Canada Wildlife Act are strictly enforced. There is a risk of death or serious injury to persons entering Wellers Bay NWA from hazards posed by UXO, including bombs and other munitions. People are advised not to touch any UXO or other suspicious objects and to report all suspicious objects by calling 911 or local police (DND, 2016; National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces - UXO).

Authorized visitors (persons who have been issued a permit) must obtain Occupational Health and Safety training and an UXO safety briefing prior to their visit or be accompanied by trained personnel, make all reasonable efforts to inform themselves of risks and hazards, and be prepared and self-sufficient. Authorized visitors to the Wellers Bay NWA may encounter severe weather (e.g., wind, heat, storms), uneven and unstable ground, and access to the NWA can be difficult. In general, authorized visitors must seek and heed expertise to operate in these environments and demonstrate that they have the required training, certification and means to access the site safely.

Any emergency should be reported immediately to the appropriate responding authorities. Reports should include the date, time and nature of the incident/accident, contact names and information of the reporting party (for follow-up information), and other relevant details. Multiple authorities should be advised as soon as possible, if the situation warrants. Refer to Appendix 5 for a list of contacts.

Non-emergency issues related to security or health and safety issues for Wellers Bay NWA should be reported to:

Environment and Climate Change Canada - Canadian Wildlife Service
Ontario Region
4905 Dufferin Street
Toronto ON M3H 5T4
Telephone: 1-800-668-6767
Email: ec.enviroinfo.ec@canada.ca