SIMIC

RESIDENTS of remote Union Bay (pop 1,200), British Columbia have renewed calls to shut down a shipbreaking site where two former US Government research vessels are being scrapped, reports Fort Lauderdale's Maritime Executive.

Established in BC in 2016, the company is involved in the salvage, dismantling, and recycling of marine vessels, barges, and railway assets such as locomotives.



In 2019, the Deep Water Recovery (DWR) Company purchased a 111-acre property in Union Bay on the eastern shore of Vancouver Island near the Strait of Georgia that is a multi-zoned property that includes a 15-acre industrial marine site and a 27-acre water tenure specifically for vessel recycling.



Supported by environmentalists, the Concerned Citizens of Baynes Sound (CCOBS), residents are protesting against shipbreaking.



The eco group sends letters to the federal, provincial, and regional authorities, asserting that the sites are not only hazardous but in violation of both national and international environmental and safety standards.



The company is dismantling old National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) oceanographic research ships.



Remote Union Bay, nearly midway up the forested east coast of Vancouver Island. is supported by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform that says the ships are laden with hazardous materials including asbestos.



The residents have repeatedly held protests against what they term as dirty and dangerous scrapping operations.



In their latest push for the shutting down of the site, the residents contend that government tests have confirmed the presence of known toxins such as lead and cadmium at concentrations 20 times above the provincial maximum allowable limits.



They also say that asbestos, a recognised carcinogen, has been confirmed on the premises, notably within the structure of the recycled ships.



The residents have been fighting for years with the company arguing in a 2022 court hearing that the eco militants are "engaged in a malicious campaign of trespass and harassment" to shut down business.



The company says they argue they comply with Canadian regulations to which the activists argue Canada must take a stronger stance at the national level.



The two vessels became the group's latest focus, charged that hazardous materials, as defined the Hazardous Waste Regulation, is being mishandled, exposing workers, the surrounding community, and the environment to severe risks.



"The health, safety, and environmental risks currently posed by the shipbreaking operations in Union Bay are unacceptable. We urge you to take immediate action and shut down this hazardous waste site to protect our community, our environment, and the integrity of Baynes Sound," states the CCOBS in its latest letter to government officials.