IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Fall 2014 - 23

Considering that drone activity is already occurring in Canada, it's important to understand how
drones are being regulated, especially since we are in
formative years that will shape future practices where
drones will play a larger role in society with even
greater sophistication.
To understand drone regulation in Canada, we must
look primarily to Transport Canada, the central agency
in charge of integrating civil drones into domestic airspace.2 Transport Canada creates the rules of conduct
for civil drone operations and is also responsible for
authorizing drone use, through the issuance of certificates. A Special flight Operations Certificate (SfOC)
is the document required to operate a drone in Canada and is required for all uses that are not considered military or recreational. Military uses of drones
in Canada fall under the authority of the Department
of National Defence, while recreational uses do not
require a SfOC to operate.
Since drones are partly aircraft, it may seem logical to have a civil aviation regulator such as Transport
Canada take charge of the regulatory framework for
drones. After all, this is the common trend happening around the world. But when we stop a moment to
think about what a drone actually is, we know they are
much more than just aircraft. By virtue of their size
and design, drones can venture into places traditional
aircraft cannot. Some drones are able to maneuver in
tight spaces, including indoors. Others can stay aloft
for potentially years at a time without the need to land
[13]. Moreover, to operate at the highest level of safety,
drones that operate beyond line of sight require the
ability to observe and communicate, effectively making them surveillance devices. In addition to collecting
information necessary to operate safely, drones can be
equipped with supplemental sensing devices for various
uses. It is clear that drones will be collecting significant
quantities of data, potentially in a covert manner, and
for long periods of time. Transport Canada, and civil
aviation bodies elsewhere, are regulating the airplane
characteristics of the technology, but are not addressing the computing and sensing portion of these devices.
This has radical implications, not only for the creation
of sound regulatory policy, but also for the protection of
civil liberties and privacy in particular.
The issue at stake is how to regulate drones so
that harmful practices are mitigated and fundamental rights and freedoms, including privacy, are protected. focusing on Canada's policy-making process,

the following are seven preliminary suggestions for
civil drone regulations:3

Other Canadian agencies are also delegated regulatory responsibilities for
drones, such as Industry Canada that is in charge of allocating spectrum.
NAV Canada deals with airspace coordination. 1 Canadian Air Division is
responsible for search and rescue for downed UAVs. The Transportation
Safety Board is the reporting agency for UAV occurrences. for more information, see [12].
IEEE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY MAGAZINE

fALL 2014

1) The Policy-Making Process for Drones
Should be Broadened to Include Privacy
and Civil Liberties Representatives
The current Canadian regulatory framework for
drones, including the certification process, is undergoing significant changes to encourage the safe and
routine integration of drones into Canada's airspace
by 2017 [20]. The process involves Transport Canada,
with the help of a working group comprising industry and government stakeholders, to create new regulations for drones, and amend existing ones. (Note:
Transport Canada's working group is officially called
the Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) Systems Program
Design Working Group.)
Thirty-four out of the fifty-two working group members are affiliated with the drone or aviation industries,
while the rest are from Transport Canada, the Department of National Defence, the Ontario Provincial
Police, and the National Research Council of Canada
[21]. The private sector, state security agents, and aviation safety experts are well represented in the working
group. Absent from the list of stakeholders are civil liberties councils and privacy advocates that would otherwise make regulatory contributions to the potentially
intrusive surveillance function of these technologies.
2) We Need Greater Public
and Parliamentary Involvement
In Canada, product regulation, including new technologies, are usually integrated via regulatory rather than
legislative frameworks. In this case, unelected officials
at Transport Canada have been given the sole responsibility for overseeing the policy-making process for
drones. As a result, rigorous Parliamentary debate
is bypassed. Unfortunately, this is common practice
since product regulation rarely involves Parliamentary
oversight. In addition to this flawed process, members
of the public can only engage in Transport Canada's
rulemaking procedure at the final stage through the
government's online regulatory consultation website,
the Canada Gazette [22]. Ultimately, by the time
Transport Canada's new and amended regulations are
completed, the working group will have had almost
eleven years to review and discuss the rules,4 while
the public is on average given thirty days to review
and make regulatory recommendations. Such an

While a discussion about Canada's privacy laws are outside the scope of
this article, see the policy papers [14]-[16] for information on how Canadian privacy laws could apply in the case of drone-based social surveillance.
for a critical analysis on the shortcomings of privacy, constitutional, and
criminal laws with respect to drone-based surveillance within Europe, the
U.S., and Australia, see [17]-[19].

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