The 麻豆传媒映画Fraser Port Authority says it is in the early stages of a plan to dredge Burrard Inlet to allow more oil to be shipped through the harbour.
Because of the depth of the inlet east of the Second Narrows, Aframax tankers docked at Trans Mountain’s Westridge terminal can only load to 80 per cent capacity. The idea to dredge the seabed was floated by Prime Minister Mark Carney, and B.C.’s Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions Adrian Dix has recently voiced his support.
The 麻豆传媒映画Fraser Port Authority released a statement this week confirming it has begun its approval process.
“There is pressing need to optimize the port and its infrastructure to support Canada’s trade through the gateway and support a strong national economy, in the face of an uncertain and rapidly changing global landscape,” it read. “As part of this work we are partnering with industry and government to enable Canadian trade through the Port of 麻豆传媒映画and deliver stronger national supply chains.”
The dredging work will need to proceed through a permitting process including First Nations consultation, which has now begun along with early field studies, the port says.
But the proposal is raising environmental concerns and questions over governance and Indigenous rights.
First Nations assert rights
The s蓹lilw蓹ta涩 (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) released its own statement warning that the proposal is far from a done deal.
“Burrard Inlet and the Second Narrows are important sites for TWN culturally, spiritually, historically, economically, and ecologically. A proposal to dig up the seabed, which is culturally a part of us, is a very serious concern,” it read. “Tsleil-Waututh has a sacred, legal obligation to protect, defend and steward our Inlet. We hold inherent and constitutionally-protected Indigenous title and rights to this area. The Crown must remember that TWN is an order of government with jurisdiction over these matters as well, and Tsleil-Waututh cautions those who speak as though this project has been pre-approved.”
The nation has been working on numerous projects to restore the shorelines and seabed around their territory and with the federal and provincial governments to advance that cause.
As early as March 9, Chief Jen Thomas publicly raised concerns about the potential for dredging to set back the work they’ve done so far. And as recently as March 27, the port said no such proposal was in the application phase.
The Sk瘫wx瘫wu虂7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) released its own statement on May 16 saying they had only just received preliminary referral for early engagement by the port.
“We will be following our process to review the information in order to assess and protect our right-based interests,” the statement read.
UBC environmentalist responds
Juan José Alava, principal investigator with UBC’s Ocean Pollution Research Unit, said while he hasn’t seen any technical documents detailing the quantity of material to be dredged and the methods that will be used, the practice does present numerous environmental concerns.
The ocean floor tends to be a “cocktail” of industrial, agricultural and urban runoff contaminants, he said, including dioxins, PCBs, hydrocarbons, heavy metals and microplastics.
“Sediment is basically a sink for all these pollutants, but it can become a source if we suspend all these materials with dredging,” he said.
Dredging also leads to turbidity, which blocks out sunlight and impacts phytoplankton that are the basis of the marine environment’s food web.
“So they need to be very careful in what kind of technological application they are going to use to try to dredge,” he said, calling for a full environmental assessment.
Alava also questioned how and where the dredged material will be disposed of, noting that if it’s done in local waters, it could be in the critical habitat of endangered southern resident killer whales, salmon or rock fish nurseries.
North 麻豆传媒映画mayor not so worried
District of North 麻豆传媒映画Mayor Mike Little, , said the dredging appears to be reasonable, based on a briefing he had with port officials earlier this week.
“They did characterize it as fairly minor capital dredging.… I hammered them with a whole bunch of questions,” he said. “If you’re going to have all of the risk with the vessels going in and out of the space, it makes sense to maximize what you can get out of them, so long as it’s safe to do so.”
The area likely for dredging is not far from the former Ripple Rock, an underwater mountain that created dangerous eddies in the tidal currents, causing numerous shipwrecks and drownings .
Little said he understands the inlet floor in that area doesn’t contain a lot of the sediments that pose environmental threats.
“There’s such a strong tidal flow through that area that you wouldn’t expect it to be soft, silty material. It’s probably scoured rock,” he said.
Green Party MLA questions governance
West Vancouver-Sea to Sky Green Party MLA Jeremy Valeriote, however, said beyond environmental worries, there are also serious questions about the approval process.
Valeriote said he also doesn’t believe the project will face the vetting it needs if it is not subject to a full fledged federal environmental assessment. Currently, the port is only putting the proposal through its own project and environmental review.
“That’s less reliable because they’re the proponent as well as the assessor,” he said. “We’re talking about dredging up potentially contaminated sediment, harming habitat for an extra 20 per cent of tankers.”
Valeriote said the threat of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs is pushing governments to make rash decisions that may not hold up over time.
“I am very concerned that we’re doing it too quickly, without the right forethought and that we’re going to pay for it in the long term, either from an environmental or First Nations governance perspective,” he said. “I’m not convinced that this needs to be a huge priority. If it was, it would have been thought of for the five years they spent building the pipeline that went well over budget.”
Trans Mountain declined to comment on the proposal.
