VANCOUVER - A large and rusting ghost ship floating aimlessly off the Pacific coast is drifting towards Alaskan waters, setting off a series of tactical steps by the U.S. Coast Guard.

The unmanned 54-metre fishing vessel is at the forefront of tons of debris heading across the Pacific Ocean from last year's massive tsunami in Japan.

The ship is about 150 kilometres west of the northern most tip of Haida Gwaii, or the Queen Charlotte Islands, off British Columbia's coast and appears to be heading north.

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class David Mosley said Sunday the coast guard dropped a data marker on the ship Saturday so they would have a constant, real-time, position on the vessel.

Mosley said the key concern is if the ship moves north west over top of Haida Gwaii and into the body of water that divides Canada and the United States.

"Dixon Entrance ... is a pretty heavily travelled area for cargo ships, fuel ships, even cruise ships in the summer, so we have to be aware of what the overall danger is to the maritime traffic as well as the maritime environment," he said.

"It has the potential to be a hazard, especially with the unknown of what's on board, the direction that the vessel could be travel."

The vessel was swept out to sea along with an island of other debris when the tsunami hit Japan after the magnitude-9 earthquake struck last March.

Officials say the boat is a former squid fishing vessel that was based out of Hokkaido, Japan. It was located in the Oshawa Seamount area.

At first officials thought the ship was bound for Canadian waters, but Mosley said it now appears to be on a northerly course towards Alaska.

"All that superstructure up above the water line acts like a sail on a sailboat. If it's a good northerly wind, it will push it," he said. "Depending on the direction it goes, that's the window of time we have to respond to operate and ensure the safety of commercial vessels and the environment."

Mosley said a U.S. Coast Guard cutter would be sent out this week to assess the condition of the vessel.

"So we're looking at — do we work with other government agencies to go out and just sink it while it's still well off shore, or do we need to arrange to have a vessel come out and take it into tow and dispose of it in a way other than just going out and scuttling it. Those are all different things we have to look at."

In Canada, several government departments are watching the drifting vessel including Transport, Environment, Fisheries, Public Safety and National Defence.

A Transport Canada spokeswoman said marine currents and winds could make the vessel's destination very unpredictable and a warning has been issued to mariners to watch for the potential hazard.

"We will ensure that it does not wash ashore on the Canadian coast," Sau Sau Liu said.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said the ship was named the Oshawa Seamount. This version has been updated.

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• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a catamaran sightseeing boat washed by the tsunami onto a two-story tourist home in Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture on April 16, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 16, 2012 (bottom). March 11, 2012 will mark the first anniversary of the massive tsunami that pummelled Japan, claiming more than 19,000 lives. Credit: Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combo shows an image (top) taken by a Miyako City official on March 11, 2011 of the tsunami breeching an embankment and flowing into the city of Miyako in Iwate prefecture and the same area (bottom image) on Jan. 16, 2012 nearly one year after the March 11 tsunami devastated the area. Credit: Jiji Press / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows people evacuating with small boats down a road flooded by the tsunami in the city of Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture on March 12, 2011 (top) and the same area on January 13, 2012 (bottom). Jiji Press / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a vehicle sitting on a three-story building in a tsunami hit area of the town of Minamisanriku in Miyagi prefecture on March 13, 2011 (L) and the same area on Jan. 14, 2012 (R). Credit: Jiji Press / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows people walking on a bridge upon which a boat lies washed up by the tsunami in Hishonomaki, Miyagi prefecture on March 15, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 13, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Philippe Lopez / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a private plane, cars and debris outside Sendai Airport in Natori, Miyagi prefecture on March 13, 2011 (top) two days after a tsunami hit the region on March 11, 2011 and the same area on Jan. 12, 2012 (bottom). March 11, 2012 will mark the first anniversary of the massive tsunami that pummeled Japan, claiming more than 19,000 lives. Credit: Mike Clarke / Toro Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows damage caused by the March 11, 2011 tsunami seen from a hill overlooking the city of Kesennuma on March 16, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 14, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Phillippe Lopez / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows local residents looking at a tsunami hit area of Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture on March 12, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 11, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Kazuhiro Nogi / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a rescue worker walking through rubble in the tsunami hit area of Minamisanriku, Miyagi prefecture on March 18, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 14, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Mike Clarke / Toru Ymanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a tsunami hit area of Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture on March 22, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 15, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Nicolas Asfouri / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a fishing boat lying amongst the tsunami rubble in Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture on March 31, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 16, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Toshifumi Kitamura / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows the view of a tsunami hit area of Ofunato, Iwate prefecture on March 14, 2011 (top) and as the scene appears on Jan. 15, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Toshifumi Kitamura / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows cars piled up in front of the airport control tower in Sendai on March 14, 2011 (L) after a tsunami hit the region on March 11, 2011 and the same area on Jan. 12, 2012 (R). Credit: Phillippe Lopez / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows the view of a tsunami hit area of Ofunato, Iwate prefecture on March 14, 2011 (L) and on Jan. 15, 2012 (R). Credit: Toshifumi Kitamura / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a tsunami hit area of Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture on March 22, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 15, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Nicolas Asfouri / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows residents walking on roads covered with mud and debris in a tsunami hit area of Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, on March 14, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 13, 2012 (bottom). Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a cherry blossom tree amongst tsunami devastation in the city of Kamaishi, Iwate prefecture on April 20, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 16, 2012 (bottom). Credit: Yasuyoshi Chiba / Toru Yamanaka, AFP / Getty Images

• Japan Tsunami One Year Later

  This combination of pictures shows a tsunami hit area of Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture on March 22, 2011 (top) and the same area on Jan. 15, 2012 (bottom). March 11, 2012 will mark the first anniversary of the massive tsunami that pummelled Japan, claiming more than 19,000 lives. Credit: Nicolas Asfouri / Toru Yamanaka, Getty Images