The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, in partnership with container terminal operator DP World, announced June 2 that the port authority-led Centerm Expansion Project and South Shore Access Project at the Port of Vancouver have been awarded the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI) Envision Platinum award, the highest rated award by ISI.
The ISI’s Platinum award measures projects based on a number of sustainability achievements, which include: stimulating sustainable growth and development; prioritizing the needs of local communities through investments; stakeholder engagement; reducing emissions and sustainable marine restoration.
The Centerm Expansion Project and South Shore Access Project are designed to help meet increasing demand for containers trade through the port. The expansions are expected to increase container-handling ability at Centerm Terminal by two-thirds, from 900,000 20-foot equivalent unit containers to 1.5 million TEUs.
By increasing the terminal footprint by only 15% and rearranging the terminal operations, DP World would be able to handle a more than 60% increase in containers, according to the Port Authority.
The projects are designed to remove trade bottlenecks while delivering significant benefits to communities, such as improved port roads, reduced travel delays, reduced congestion, better emergency response, lower GHG emissions and additional job opportunities.
One of the most significant longer-term benefits, according to the Port Authority, would be that port truck traffic would be taken off neighboring city roads, because they’d use the new Centennial Road overpass to access the highway.
The award for the Centerm Expansion Project and the South Shore Access Project marks the second time the port authority has received an ISI Platinum award. In 2015, the port authority’s Low Level Road Project received a Platinum award, and was the first port authority transportation project to receive an ISI Envision-verified sustainable infrastructure rating system award.
“We are proud to receive our second Platinum award from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure,” Vancouver Fraser Port Authority President and CEO Robin Silvester said. The Port Authority is the federal agency mandated to enable Canada’s trade through the port.
“This award again highlights our commitment to developments that support Canada’s trade agenda in a way that protects the environment and considers local communities, as we advance towards our vision for the Port of Vancouver to be the world’s most sustainable port,” Silvester said.
Sustainability, added Canada Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, is key to developing a better Canada and a better world.
“With the Government of Canada’s financial contribution through the National Trade Corridors Fund program, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is leading the way in building infrastructures that are greener and better able to respond to climate change.”
The National Trade Corridors Fund (NTCF) is a competitive federal program designed to help infrastructure owners and users invest in the critical transportation assets that support economic activity in Canada. In 2018 and 2019, the port authority received $300 million from the NTCF to progress multiple infrastructure projects throughout the Lower Mainland.
DP World Vancouver General Manager Joel Werner said his company was committed to operating responsibly, calling to vital to the company’s long-term success.”
“We have made efforts to operate as a responsible and innovative business throughout this project and we looked for ways to be more efficient while reducing our impact on the environment,” he said. “We would like to thank everyone who contributed to the project achieving this recognition from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure.”
For their patience during construction of the terminal expansion and construction on the south shore, the port authority and DP World, created the Centerm Community Fund for the surrounding community. The fund provided $500,000 to a total of 41 community organizations in East Vancouver.
The Centerm Expansion Project and the South Shore Access Project are both expected to be complete by early 2023.The projects, according to the port, are an example of how the port authority is ensuring that it can sustain growth in the gateway. It is part of a suite of gateway infrastructure projects across the Lower Mainland, under the Greater Vancouver Gateway 2030 strategy.
More information about the port projects is available at www.portvancouver.com/centerm-expansion.