( CNN ) -- A fishing trawler swept away more than a year ago by a tsunami off the east coast of Japan has been spotted floating near British Columbia , Canadian officials said . `` It looks fairly sound and has rust streak from being out there for a year , '' said Marc Proulx , the maritime coordinator of the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Victoria , British Columbia . The trawler was stable and posed no danger Saturday , officials said . The trawler is part of a giant debris field that was generated by the giant wall of water that struck the east coast of the island nation a year ago following a 9.0 earthquake , sweeping everything from cars to houses into the ocean . The fishing vessel is about 120 miles off the Queen Charlotte Islands , commonly referred to as the Haida Gwaii . The islands are an archipelago on the north coast of the British Columbia . It was first spotted by a Canadian military air patrol , and it has since been determined that it has been adrift without anybody at the helm since March 11 , 2011 , Proulx said Friday . The Japan Coast Guard identified the owner of the vessel after being contacted Friday by Canadian officials , who were able to provide the identification number on the hull of the ship . The vessel , which was used for squid fishing , was moored at Hachinohe in the Aomori prefecture when the tsunami hit , said Toshiro Yoshinaga , a Coast Guard official . The trawler is considered a navigation obstruction for vessels in the area , according to Canada 's Department of National Defense . Mariners received a notice about the vessel 's presence . Canadian agencies are monitoring the ship for possible marine pollution , though there are no reports of leaks from the vessel , the defense department said . CNN 's Jake Carpenter and Junko Ogura contributed to this report .
NEW : The ship is stable and poses no danger . NARRATOR: The owner has been identified , a Japanese official says . The boat is part of a giant debris field making its way toward North America .