Canada will face a capacity crunch that will have far-reaching economic implications if the Terminal 2 proposal at Roberts Bank doesn’t proceed, warns the Port of Vancouver.
The port authority in recent weeks submitted an updated project rationale and overview document to the federal independent review panel looking at the proposed three-berth container terminal, a document that reiterates the port’s contention that T2 represents the best option to accommodate growth and is needed to deliver capacity as demand for goods shipped in containers continues to grow.
The document notes independent forecasts, conducted by an expert third party, conclude that container traffic on the West Coast is expected to grow significantly.
“We’ve studied how to address the capacity shortfall since the late 1990s. To address the shortfall in the short-term, the port authority has increased container capacity through expansions at existing facilities and has funded improvements to road and rail to increase efficiency throughout the gateway,” the port document explains.
“Planned improvements won’t be enough. Through ongoing studies, we’ve learned that even with significant advancements to increase capacity at existing terminals, work underway at the Port of Prince Rupert to increase container capacity, and continued efforts to create efficiencies throughout the supply chain, there won’t be enough capacity to manage Canada’s future trade demand on the West Coast.”
The City of Delta’s latest submission to the review panel, approved by Delta council this week, outlines a number of concerns regarding the project, from noise to impact on birds, including a lack of scientific consensus regarding the potential impacts on biofilm, which is a critical food source for migratory birds at Roberts Bank.
The submission also points out Delta’s concern about increased congestion at the George Massey Tunnel, staff noting a solution is unlikely to be in place before 2030 following the provincial government’s cancellation of the 10-lane George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project bridge plan
“Clearly, a development on the scale of RBT2, which will double container truck movements through Delta, must not be allowed to proceed until the tunnel bottleneck is resolved, and it is recommend that the review panel be requested to ensure that any potential RBT2 is contingent upon resolution of this issue,” Delta’s submission states.
Against Port Expansion’s Roger Emsley, meantime, said it’s disappointing the public comment period hasn’t been extended further by the panel.
The panel notes it cannot predict the timing when the public hearing on T2 will begin. The panel says it will provide a minimum of 60 days’ notice in advance of the start of the hearing.
