[4] More than 100,000 L (22,000 imp gal; 26,000 US gal) of fuel contaminated the coast, coves and shores 20 km (12 mi) west of Bella Bella, the core community of the Heiltsuk Nation as well as the environmentally sensitive Great Bear Rainforest - Canada's contribution to the Queen's Commonwealth Canopy (QCC), a network of forest conservation programs.

Lama Passage extends from Seaforth Channel to Fitzburgh Sound[5] with Dryad Point[6] across from Saunders Island at the junction.

Nose Island, 0.6 mi (0.97 km) west of Christiansen Point, is steep-to on its south side and has a conspicuous tree about 60 m (200 ft) high.

[15] Although the Seaforth Channel is part of the Voluntary Tanker Exclusion Zone, the Nathan E. Stewart which is a U.S. vessel under 10,000 gross tonnage was allowed to operate by the Pacific Pilotage Authority, "without a local pilot on the West Coast of Canada."

The fuel spill threatens "dozens of species that are harvested in the area, including manila clam beds that provide income of up to $150,000 per year for the community.

[19] In 2011 when the Nathan E Stewart lost power and was set adrift in rough waters of Alaska, journalists at the time drew attention to the Pacific Pilotage Authority waiver that exempted the barge which makes routine weekly runs "between Vancouver and Alaska through the Inside Passage"[12] "from the requirement of having Canadian pilots on board.

They called in the Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) at 4:30 am and their vessels and crew from Vancouver and Prince Rupert arrived on site at 5:30 pm.

By October 26 the tanks of fuel on the submerged tug had been pumped out and "110,131 litres of an oil-water mixture" were recovered[17] but oil was discovered in at "least three coves in Seaforth Channel.

Premier Christy Clark and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticized the oil spill response as "inadequate" and "unacceptable."

The incident highlighted concerns about lack of capacity of existing response teams as on the eve of proposed pipelines which would lead to even more tanker traffic on the Inside Passage.

[14] On November 6 in Bella Bella Federal Minister of Transportation Marc Garneau met briefly with Heiltsuk hereditary and elected chiefs and on November 7 in Vancouver Prime Minister Trudeau announced a $1.5B ocean protection plan which will "creating a marine safety system, restoring marine ecosystems and research into oil spill cleanup methods.