B.C.'s Roberts Bank Terminal 2 expansion listed as 'project of national interest' | Hanomansing Live

The federal government has added another project to its list deemed to be of national interest. I'm pleased to announce that the government of Canada has listed Roberts Bank Terminal 2 as a project of national interest under the Building Canada Act. The designation will give the project the, quote, immediate regulatory certainty that it needs to be built at the Port of Vancouver. And it comes as Canada looks to expand and diversify its trade capacity. CBC's Dan Burr joins you now with more on this. So, Dan, this is a massive development, but it's also being built in the same site as another project of national interest. That's right. We have a map. We want to give you a sense of how busy this area might just become. Roberts Bank Terminal, as you can see, is already a large place. What they essentially want to do is build another one of these, and this would be Roberts Bank Terminal Two, it would essentially double its capacity, and the plan is to be able to generate up to $100 billion in trade capacity every year. Keep in mind, the Port of Vancouver, all the way in Vancouver, which is up here, which is south, and that's the Canada-U.S. border, is the largest and busiest port in this country. As Sarah mentioned, this new process, this new designation means the approval process, including for environmental assessments, can be fast-tracked, and it is now targeted at 2035, not 2039. But the. This terminal expansion is either right next to or right in the same area as the planned terminus for the Alberta Pacific Link Pipeline. The government of Alberta tells CBC News the Pacific Link Pipeline project is still slated to use Roberts Bank as its export location as a deep water port. Two massive projects, at least on paper, separate right now, but a lot for the port to manage. This project, as you point out, is very far along, and so we'll be moving this forward and considering all of the potential impacts on the design and operation of RBT2 as the concepts for the pipeline and its outlet come forward. There will be interaction, clearly, between the vessels that would come to and from that facility, and that would come to RBT2. That's our job. That's what we do really well, and so we'll be working on that. And a final investment decision on all of this is expected sometime of mid-2027. A lot going on down there, Sarah. You talk about a lot going on. You talk about waterways. Can we talk about the environment? Because I'm sure others are, especially when it comes to endangered species that might be in the area. Absolutely. And this has been a major concern. This project, Roberts Bank Terminal 2, has been... 10 to 13 years in the making, but it's also in a very sensitive ecological area. Not only do you have the traditional lands of the Tsawassum First Nation, you have the B.C. Ferries Terminal here, as well as this is a natural ground for the southern resident killer whale population. They're estimated at only 76 left in the wild. They feast on Chinook salmon, which have also seen a drop for environmental reasons over the years. So, environmental groups groups are very concerned that any more development here will harm sensitive ecosystems and are fearful that it could in fact cut the number of southern resident killer whales among other species. Today the chief of the Tsawassum First Nation said they are in fact asking for a breach or some sort of throughway so salmon can more easily move. She says her nation is giving consent to the expansion of Roberts Bank but not unconditional support. Have a listen. It is not enough to simply minimize impacts. We must leave the environment better than we found it because I can say with confidence that leaving a healthy planet for our future generations is in the national interests. And since this announcement was made, environmental groups like the Wilderness Committee say they are fearful that this will, in fact, drive the southern resident killer whales to extinction. When it comes to the vessels and, in fact, more ships that could be in this area, Transportation Minister Stephen MacKinnon said that they're working with B.C. Ferries as well as other vessel operators to cut underwater noise, which can interfere with killer whales, among other species, Sarah. A lot going on here. Okay, Dan, thank you. You're welcome.