The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority says it has no plans to further deepen the Fraser River to accommodate larger vessels.
Hotly criticized by opponents of the George Massey Tunnel replacement bridge project, the port authority today announced that the river, together with existing marine terminal properties and port industrial lands, can sufficiently handle Canada’s trade for the foreseeable future.
In a news release, the port notes it recently completed an analysis of the Fraser River and its potential to accommodate increasing trade. The analysis considered a variety of possible uses of existing port lands and assessed dredging the river at different depths. It was determined that deepening the river would be extremely costly, requiring extensive environmental study and consultation over many years.
“We have determined that with more intensive use of the port’s existing terminals and further development of the port authority’s existing industrial lands along the water, the Fraser River will be well positioned to accommodate Canada’s growing trade without deepening the channel,” said Peter Xotta, vice-president of planning and operations.
The port says shippers will continue to use vessels of various sizes to ensure the safe navigation of commercial traffic along the river and the environmental protection of the river’s ecosystem. The port authority will continue its program of dredging to maintain current channel depths.
The port spends $15 million annually to dredge the river to its current depth of about 11.5 metres, recouping a big chunk of that by selling the sand.
Opponents of the George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project claim the port has advocated for a bridge to replace the tunnel in order to have the river dredged at a deeper depth to accommodate much larger ships.
The port has stated there are no plans to dredge the channel once the bridge is built, something echoed by bridge project director Geoff Freer, who also noted it would be a huge, costly undertaking because the entire river would need to be dredged.
A report last fall by the Boundary Bay Conservation Committee suggested the federal government undertake an environmental assessment of the bridge project due to impacts to the Fraser River, including plans for future dredging.
Deeper dredging of the lower Fraser River could also have negative consequences on the daily fresh water available for Delta's farms, according to a report commissioned last year by the Delta Farmers’ Institute. A report to Delta council notes although the port stated there are no plans for dredging deeper than the current depth at this time, the information will be useful should a proposal be brought forward in the future.
