The government of Ontario has announced on ERO that as a result of its (sometimes, heck, often) controversial consultations with the public and various stakeholders, effective July 1 it is amending Regulation 161/17 under the Public Lands Act to ban “floating accommodations” from anchoring on the province’s waterways. (The regulatory change however does not apply to waters within the province that are outside Ontario’s jurisdiction, which include the Trent-Severn Waterway, which is part of Parks Canada.) Although anchoring is a federal right protected by the Canada Shipping Act, an anchor has to be set in the bottom of a lake or river, which is provincial Crown land and has been the basis of regulations limiting the duration of anchoring, as I discuss on my Anchoring Rights page.
“We heard a number of concerns about the use of floating accommodations on Ontario’s waterways, including their potential effects on the environment as well as concerns about safety,” said Graydon Smith, Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, in a statement released by the government. “With these changes, we are taking action to protect our waterways by preserving access to lakes and rivers, ensuring access for recreational users, and reducing the potential for pollution of lakes and rivers.”
The province has revised its definition of “camping unit” to distinguish floating homes and cottages from cruising boats by defining the former as “floating accommodations” and cruising boats as “watercraft equipped for overnight accommodations.” The province has made no change in the duration-of-stay provisions affecting boaters, which remains at 21 non-consecutive days per year within a space of 100 meters. The ERO decision reads in part:
In response to the concerns about floating accommodations we heard in the comments received, the definition of “camping unit” in both regulations (Ontario Regulation 161/17 and Ontario Regulation 326/94) was amended and definitions for “floating accommodation” and “watercraft equipped for overnight accommodation” were added. These changes will provide greater clarity regarding the buildings, structures and things that cannot be placed or used for outdoor accommodation or camping purposes on public lands covered by water.
Effective July 1, 2023, the definition of “camping unit” in Ontario Regulation 161/17 and in Ontario Regulation 326/94 is replaced with the following:
“camping unit” means a structure or vehicle that may be used for camping purposes or as an outdoor accommodation and includes a tent, trailer, tent-trailer, recreational vehicle, camper-back and any watercraft equipped for overnight accommodation but does not include a floating accommodation;
Effective July 1, 2023, Ontario Regulation 161/17 and Ontario Regulation 326/94 are amended by adding the following definitions:
“floating accommodation” means a floating building, structure or thing, or a combination of floating buildings, structures or things, equipped or useable for overnight accommodation and not primarily designed to be used for navigation, and includes a floating building, structure or thing, or a combination of floating buildings, structures or things that,
(a) is primarily designed for or able to be used for residential purposes,
(b) is a raft, barge or floating platform that has on top of it a building, structure, vehicle or thing that may be used for overnight accommodation, for camping purposes or as an outdoor accommodation,
(c) would reasonably be expected to require towing to be placed on public lands or is placed on public lands by means of towing or any other type of assistance,
(d) is equipped with jack-up technology or a similar mechanism used to anchor or rise above the surface of the water, with or without spud cans, or
(e) has a floating foundation or a floatation platform which may include floats constructed of polystyrene, plastic, concrete or logs and stringers;
“watercraft equipped for overnight accommodation” means a watercraft that is,
(a) equipped for overnight accommodation,
(b) primarily designed for and able to be used for navigation, and
(c) self-propelled and steered independently
Wild Great Lakes 
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