Sterling Shipyard Remediation and Infill

The Port of Vancouver has applied to undertake remediation and redevelopment activities in subtidal, intertidal and uplands areas of a former shipyard at 2089 to 2095 Commissioner Street in Vancouver, British Columbia. Contaminated sediment in the project area would be removed and replaced with clean fill to raise the grade and reclaim 4,500 square meters of additional land for future industrial use. The proposed works include the removal of approximately 17,000 cubic metres of contaminated sediment down to a maximum depth of approximately 5 metres, installation of a 100 metre long rock berm in the low intertidal area of the site, and the placement of approximately 40,000 cubic metres of engineered fill in both the intertidal and upland areas. The contamination from the former shipyard includes debris, wood waste, metals and hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and covers over 80 per cent of the intertidal area down to a maximum depth of 5 metres. The fill layer in this area ranges in depth from 4 metres to 8 metres. Habitat offsetting is also proposed, and includes the creation of two subtidal reefs, installation of seeded kelp ropes, off-site restoration to remediate a former log dump at the northern extend of Indian Arm, and marine riparian vegetation. As some of the activities are dependent on tides, work may need to take place outside of standard hours (except for Sundays and statutory holidays). Should the proposed project be approved, the project construction timeline is expected to start in Q2 2023 and conclude by Q1 2024.


Latest update

February 12, 2024: Fisheries and Oceans Canada issued its Notice of Determination and determined that the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

Participate

Contacts

Fish and Fish Habitat Protection Program / Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Crystal Lloyd, Senior Biologist
200 - 401 Burrard Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 3S4
Email: crystal.lloyd@dfo-mpo.gc.ca


  • Location

    • Sterling Shipyard, Burrard Inlet, Vancouver (British Columbia)
  • Nature of Activity

    • Remediation and conservation
  • Assessment Status

    Completed
  • Start Date

    2022-12-22
  • Proponent

    SNC Lavalin on behalf of the Port Authority
  • Authorities

    • Fisheries and Oceans Canada
    • Vancouver Fraser Port Authority
  • Assessment Type

    Project on federal lands
  • Reference Number

    84198
Disclaimer

This map is for illustrative purposes. The markers represent the approximate locations based on available data. More than one marker may be identified for a given assessment.

 

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