The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, which manages the Port of Vancouver, will work with partners to design a new collaborative system to manage marine vessel traffic and optimize the supply chain flow for the gateway, Canadian Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra announced Aug. 12.
The Port Authority and its partners will work to develop the implementation plan for the new system by March 31, 2022, according to the transport minister’s office. Planned measures include:
Strengthening marine safety by reducing congestion and actively managing marine traffic in the busiest, most confined waters of the port;
Improving the efficiency and reliability of the flow of goods through this strategic gateway for all supply chain partners;
Reducing environmental impacts, including noise impacts in Southern Resident killer whale habitat, by limiting unnecessary vessel movements, and;
Reducing negative social impacts, like ambient noise and light pollution, by reducing overall anchorage usage in Southern British Columbia and implementing a Code of Conduct for vessels at anchorage.
“By collaborating with industry and shipping communities to improve supply chain efficiency in a safe and responsible way,” Alghabra said, “we can increase our maritime trade and support Canada’s economic recovery and growth while protecting our coasts and waterways for generations to come.”
The vessel traffic flow improvement plan, according to federal government office Transport Canada, will also include approaches to policies, procedures, practices, incentives, technologies, information, and data-sharing needed to deliver a traffic management system that creates benefits for all partners.
This approach, according to Transport Canada, would reflect best practices seen in some leading ports around the world.
“We are proud to collaborate with port partners, stakeholders, Indigenous groups, and government on this new marine vessel traffic management system that will not only improve and optimize the efficient movement of goods through our port system, but also reduce the environmental and community impacts of trade activity in our gateway,” Vancouver Fraser Port Authority President and CEO Robin Silvester said.