Public Opinion Research Study: Canadians' Awareness and Understanding of Southern Resident killer whales and Boating Safety - Text Description

**Figure 1: Recreational Watercraft Use**
Used a recreational watercraft in the last year	52%
Plan to use a recreational watercraft in the next year	48%

**Figure 2: Manner in which respondents go/plan to go out on the ocean**
	Been out on the ocean in the last year (n=407)	Plan to out on the ocean in the next year (n=343)
Passenger	49%	62%
Boat owner	41%	35%
Boat renter	19%	14%

**Figure 4: Frequency of Recreational Watercraft Use**
1	17%
2	17%
3	9%
4	6%
5	7%
6 to 9	6%
10 to 14	8%
15 to 29	8%
30 to 49	4%
50 or more	4%
My first time will be in the next year	8%

**Figure 6: Life Jacket and Personal Flotation Device Use**
Wear a life jacket or PFD	80%
Do not wear a life jacket or PFD	12%
It depends on the type of watercraft	3%
It depends on the situation / people involved	3%

**Figure 8: Awareness of Specific Protective and Voluntary Measures**
	Definitely aware	Vaguely aware	Not aware
Boats should reduce speed when within a 1,000 metres of a killer whale.	51%	20%	28%
Watercraft must keep 400 metres from killer whales in all southern BC coastal waters between Campbell River and just north of Ucluelet.	37%	26%	37%
Fishing should not take place within a 1,000m of a killer whale.	25%	24%	49%
When out on the water, you can't follow whale watching boats because some have an exemption and do not need to keep 400 metres away from all killer whales.	19%	17%	63%
There is an interim sanctuary zone that prevents watercraft from operating off the northern part of Pender Island.	11%	13%	74%
There is an interim sanctuary zone that prevents watercraft from operating off parts of Saturna Island.	8%	14%	76%
There is an interim sanctuary zone that prevents watercraft from operating at Swiftsure Bank.	7%	10%	81%

**Figure 9: Source of Boating Safety Regulatory Information**
The internet	29%
Boat rental shops	15%
Boating course	13%
Friends / family / colleagues	13%
Word of mouth	9%
The Government of Canada	6%
Boat owner / captain	5%
News media	4%
Department of Fisheries and Oceans	3%
Transport Canada	3%
Personal experience	3%
Signage	2%
Marinas	1%
Book / print materials	1%
Outdoor shops	1%
Provincial government	1%
Coast guard	1%
Social media	1%
Canadian Red Cross	0.32%
Parks Canada	0.25%
Other	5%
I've never needed to look for this information	8%

**Figure 11: Level of Education**
Less than a high school diploma	2%
High School diploma	15%
Apprenticeship or other trades certificate	8%
College/non-university certificate/diploma	20%
University certificate/diploma below bachelor's level	7%
Bachelor's degree	27%
Post graduate degree above bachelor's level	20%

**Figure 14: First Nations, Métis, and Inuk Status**
Non-Indigenous	95%
Indigenous	4%