Roberts Bank Terminal 2 Project Consultation Update

Back in June, I attended a pre-consultation about Port Metro Vancouver’s proposed expansion to the Deltaport with the Roberts Bank Terminal 2. The Port recently released the results of the pre-consultation which will be used to define the terms of reference for the full public consultation process on this proposed project.

Some of the topics that people would like to be consulted on is the impacts of the project on wildlife, marine life, and agricultural land. Many of the people also wanted more details on the justification for the project considering the effect of other projects like the improved Panama Canal and Prince Rupert Port.

Of 29 respondents who provided additional comments regarding the proposed Roberts Bank Terminal 2 Project, the following are the most commonly mentioned themes. It should be noted that a respondent may have mentioned more than one of the themes below:

-Allow more input during the process, include all stakeholders, and keep the public informed (10 respondents)
-Concerned about the effects of the project on communities in the municipalities of -Delta, Township of Langley and City of Langley (7)
-Concerned about the effects of the project on health and quality of life for residents (6)
-Need to explain justification for the project through economic forecasting (6)
-Need to consider protection of the environment in project development (6)
-Concerned about the impacts of the project on existing road infrastructure and effect of increased traffic on communities and the environment (5)
-Interested in potential job creation from the project (5)
-Concerned about impacts of the project on wildlife (3)
-Concerned about the effects of an increase in rail traffic on existing infrastructure, such as in the Township and City of Langley and the New Westminster Rail Bridge (3)
-Interested in the relationship between ports in British Columbia, including Prince Rupert (3)

Looking over the pre-consultation report, I get the impression that people want to have meaningful input into the proposed port expansion and not just be a part of some whitewash and ultimately meaningless consultation process. It will be interesting to see what the next phase of consultation will looks like.