Project documents and reports

Roberts Bank in Delta, B.C. is an established trade gateway and an integral component of the Pacific Gateway. The efficiency of this transportation corridor has been achieved through coordinated investment in infrastructure to facilitate the movement of both goods and people. Roberts Bank hosts two key marine transportation facilities: the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal, which is operated by BC Ferries; and the Roberts Bank Port Facility, which consists of Deltaport, a three-berth container terminal, and Westshore Terminals, a coal exporting facility.

Roberts Bank is also a valuable habitat that supports numerous species of fish, eelgrass beds and communities of migratory birds that stop over as they travel the Pacific Flyway. Since the initial development of the original ferry terminal in the late 1950s, a great deal of work has been undertaken to better understand the interaction between port operations and wildlife and habitat at Roberts Bank.

Please note that documents in this library may contain information that is out of date and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority makes no statement regarding their accuracy. The reports provided are historical information. For current reports and studies regarding the proposed Roberts Bank Terminal 2 Project, please click here.

The Deltaport Third Berth Project was completed in early 2010. The project increased the container capacity of Deltaport by 600,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) by adding a third berth and 20 hectares of container storage facilities. For more information regarding the Deltaport Third Berth Project, please click here.

The Deltaport Third Berth Project Adaptive Management Strategy (DP3 AMS) is one of several significant environmental programs being undertaken as part of the Deltaport Third Berth Project (DP3). It is a science-based approach to monitoring and managing the Roberts Bank ecosystem. The approach will allow for the early detection of changes in the inter-causeway ecosystem so that potential significant negative ecosystem trends that are attributable to the DP3 Project can be prevented or mitigated. The AMS was developed in conjunction with and approved by Environment Canada. Annual reports from the AMS are found below.

The Deltaport Third Berth Project went through a harmonized environmental assessment process facilitated by the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office, under the British Columbia Environmental Assessment Act and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. The environmental assessment process included opportunities for participation from stakeholders and the general public.

Selected documents from the environmental assessment process are found below. To view a complete collection of all documents made available as part of the environmental assessment for the Deltaport Third Berth Project, please click here.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2010 Annual Report	This report provides an annual update regarding the ongoing work undertaken as part of the Adaptive Management Strategy for the Deltaport Third Berth Project. Areas of study include coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2009 Annual Report Summary	This document summarizes the results of the 2009 AMS Report, including the results of ongoing studies on coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2009 Annual Report	This report provides an annual update regarding the ongoing work undertaken as part of the Adaptive Management Strategy for the Deltaport Third Berth Project. Areas of study include coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2008 Annual Report Summary Information	This document summarizes the results of the 2008 AMS Report, including the results of ongoing studies on coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2008 Annual Report	This report provides an annual update regarding the ongoing work undertaken as part of the Adaptive Management Strategy for the Deltaport Third Berth Project. Areas of study include coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
2007 Annual Report Summary Information	This document summarizes the results of the 2007 AMS Report, including the results of ongoing studies on coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.
Deltaport Third Berth Adaptive Management Strategy 2007 Annual Report	This report provides an annual update regarding the ongoing work undertaken as part of the Adaptive Management Strategy for the Deltaport Third Berth Project. Areas of study include coastal geomorphology, surface water and sediment quality, eelgrass, benthic invertebrate community and coastal seabirds.

In 1995, due to growing demands for grain around the world, the Vancouver Port Corporation sought proposals for the development of an agricultural products handling facility on Pod 3 at Roberts Bank. Late in 1995, the Vancouver Port Corporation selected Cargill/Saskatchewan Wheat Pool Limited (CSWP) to develop the facility, subject to VPC Environmental Appraisal Procedures. Although the Vancouver Port Corporation retained Jacques Whitford Environmental Ltd. (Jacques Whitford) in 1997 to implement an action plan to act on the Panel recommendations, Cargill/Saskatchewan Wheat Pool later abandoned the proposed development.

Documents related to the proposed Agricultural Handling Facility are below.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Executive Summary – Environmental Appraisal Document – Agricultural Products Handling Facility at Roberts Bank	This report provides an overview of the Environmental Appraisal that was undertaken for the proposed Agricultural Products Handling Facility at Roberts Bank on the already constructed Pod 3. This proposal was later abandoned.
Proposed Agricultural Products Handling Facility – Report of the Project Environmental Review Panel	This report provides a response by the independent project review panel to the Environmental Appraisal Document submitted for the proposed Agricultural Products Handling Facility. This proposal was later abandoned.

In the 1990s there was an increasing need for more container facilities in the Lower Mainland due to increasing volumes of goods shipped by containers. The Vancouver Port Corporation contracted Gartner Lee Limited (GLL) to undertake an environmental assessment for a container terminal on Pod 4. While a Federal Environmental Assessment and Review Process (EARP) was not required for the Deltaport development on Pod 4, the Vancouver Port Corporation established in-house Environmental Appraisal Procedures. These were developed to meet or exceed the applicable standards and goals set out in federal environmental legislation.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Roberts Bank Cumulative Environmental Effects Study: Summary Report	This report was produced in response to concern regarding the perceived inadequacy of cumulative effects assessments undertaken at Roberts Bank to that point. Specific areas of study included: Marine habitat (including nutrient loading, eel grass, loss of salt marsh and quantity and quality of marsh habitat) Traditional use of marine invertebrates Emissions inventory Air quality monitoring Noise and vibration analysis
Deltaport Container Terminal Action Plan	This document provides responses to recommendations of the independent project review panel. These recommendations address: Local benefits Truck traffic Marine habitat compensation Community engagement Land use planning
Independent Project Review Panel Report	This report provides the conclusion of the independent project review panel. Issues identified include: Use of Agricultural Land Causeway Power Lines Cumulative Assessment
Environmental Appraisal of Proposed Container Terminal, Roberts Bank	Report provides the results of the environmental appraisal completed for the container terminal at Roberts Bank. Impacts are studied in the context of current conditions, construction impacts and operational impacts.

Recognizing the need for additional marine terminal facilities on the west coast, in 1975 the National Harbour Board undertook a series of site selection studies to determine the optimal location for new terminal sites. This work resulted in the decision to pursue further development at Roberts Bank. Following the environmental assessment and panel review by the Federal Environmental Assessment Review Office, the National Harbour Board proceeded with an expansion in 1981.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Report of the Environmental Assessment Panel – Roberts Bank Port Expansion	This report conveys the conclusions and recommendations of the Environmental Assessment Panel regarding the National Harbour Board’s Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Roberts Bank Port Expansion. The panel concluded that the risk associated with the expansion as proposed were too great, and that further work should be undertaken regarding a reduced expansion.
Response to “A Statement of Deficiencies in the Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion”	This document provides responses to the “statement of deficiencies” submitted by the Environmental Assessment Review Panel. Topics covered include: Project rationale and alternatives Economic benefits Habitat and wildlife impacts Noise impacts Air quality Agricultural land
Roberts Bank Port Expansion: a compendium of written submissions to the Environmental Assessment Panel	This document includes a summary of input received by the Environmental Assessment Panel for the proposed Roberts Bank Port Expansion.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 1, Summary	This document provides a summary of the Environmental Impact Assessment.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 2, Main Report	This report provides project rationale, alternatives, plans, and environmental impact projections.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 3, Appendix A	This report provides the result of studies regarding the existing physical environment at Roberts Bank.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 4, Appendix B	This report provides the result of studies regarding the existing biological environment at Roberts Bank.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 5, Appendix C	This report provides the result of studies regarding the socio-economic effects of the proposed expansion.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Roberts Bank Port Expansion: Volume 6, Appendix D	This report provides details regarding the engineering plans for the proposed expansion.
Guidelines for an environmental impact statement of the expansion to the Roberts Bank bulk-handling facility	This document provides an overview of the project proposal, environmental impacts, mitigating

Document Title	Summary of Document
Roberts Bank and Sturgeon Bank Reach Overview – Phase 2	This report provides a compilation of existing information on the physical, biological and human activities at Roberts Bank and Sturgeon Bank.
Roberts Bank and Sturgeon Bank Reach Overview – Backgrounder	This report informs management guidelines with the end goal of achieving more sustainable development at Roberts Bank and Sturgeon Bank.
Detection of the impact of predation by migratory shorebirds: an experimental test in the Fraser River estuary, British Columbia	This study was undertaken to analyze the impact of migratory shorebirds on food supplies.
Impacts of Overhead Transmission Wires on Birds at the Roberts Bank Causeway (Interim Report)	This study was undertaken to understand the impact of overhead transmission lines on the causeway with respect to seabirds.
A History of Development at Roberts Bank – An Overview	This document provides a brief overview of the past development that has taken place at Roberts Bank.
Two Decades of Fish Habitat Restoration and Bioengineering on the Fraser River Estuary, British Columbia	This study provides results of habitat restoration undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary.
Improvement of the sediment ecosystem following diversion of an intertidal sewage outfall at the Fraser River Estuary, Canada, with emphasis on Corophium salmonis (amphipoda)	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary.
Alteration of fish habitat by natural and industrial sedimentation in macro tidal estuaries British Columbia, Canada	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat and the impact of causeways on habitat.
Predation on meiofaunal and macrofaunal invertebrates by western sandpipers (Calidris mauri): evidence for dual foraging modes	This study was undertaken to analyze the relationship between migratory shorebirds and their feeding patterns.
An Overview Assessment of Compensation and Mitigation Techniques Used to Asses Fish Habitat Management in British Columbia Estuaries	This study details the results of habitat restoration undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Distribution of Juvenile Salmonids on both sides of the Deltaport Causeway	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat and the impact of causeways on habitat.
Testing the Efficacy of Spiral Vibration Dampers™ to Reduce Bird Collisions with Overhead Transmission Wires at the Roberts Bank Superport in 1997	This study was undertaken to test the effectiveness of Spiral Vibration Dampers in reducing bird collisions with the overhead transmission wires on the Deltaport causeway.
Final Report of the Roberts Bank Environmental Review Committee	This report provides an overview of the Roberts Bank Environmental Review Committee’s work to ensure that recommendations of the Report of the Environmental Assessment Panel were responsibly addressed. Issues covered include: Air quality Fish habitat Shorebirds (specifically bird strikes and overhead wires) Noise and light impacts
A Review of the Recent Physical and Biological Development of the Southern Roberts Bank Seagrass System (1950-1994)	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat, specifically eelgrass.
Impacts of Overhead Transmission Wires on Birds at the Roberts Bank Superport in 1994-1995	This study was undertaken to better understand the impact of overhead transmission lines on the causeway with respect to seabird populations.
Review of the Marine Environment and Biota of Strait of Georgia, Puget Sound and Juan de Fuca Straight	This document includes the highlights of the BC/Washington symposium on the Marine Environment (1994), including status, quality and trends in the physical and chemical environment and coastal biota of the coastal marine environment.
Estuarine science and management needed to maintain Pacific salmon production	This report provides the results of studies undertaken regarding salmons stocks and management, including those in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Expansion of seagrass habitat by the exotic Zostera Japonica, and its use by dabbling ducks and brant in Boundary Bay, British Columbia	This report provides the results of studies undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat, specifically eelgrass.
Fraser River Basin Benthic Invertebrate Catalogue	This report provides the results of benthic invertebrate studies undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
A comparison of Meiofauna Available as Fish Food on Sturgeon and Roberts Bank, Fraser River Estuary, British Columbia	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Changes in Ecosystems Supporting Nearshore Fish Populations Due to Sea level Variation: Straight of Georgia, British Columbia	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Effect of predation by juvenile Pacific salmon on marine harpacticoid copepods. II. Predator density manipulation experiments	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Effect of predation by juvenile Pacific salmon on marine harpacticoid copepods. I. Comparisons of patters of copepod mortality with patterns of salmon consumption	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Impact of predation-disturbance by large epifauna on sediment-dwelling harpacticoid copepods: field experiments in a subtidal seagrass bed	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Intrashoot distributions of leaf dwelling harpacticoid copepods on the seagrass Zostera marina L: implications for sampling design	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Vertical Distribution and Abundance of Natant Harpactidoid Copepods on a Vegetated Tidal Flat	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Roberts Bank Environmental Review Committee Progress Report	This report provides an update on the Roberts Bank Environmental Review Committee’s work to ensure that recommendations of the Report of the Environmental Assessment Pane: Roberts Bank Port Expansion were responsibly addressed. Issues covered include: Air quality Fish habitat Shorebirds (specifically bird strikes and overhead wires) Noise and light impacts
Benthic Invertebrates of Boundary Bay and Roberts Bank, British Columbia	This report provides the results of benthic invertebrate studies undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Juvenile Salmonid Use of Habitats Altered by a Coal Port in the Fraser River Estuary	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Seasonal Changes in Inshore Fish Populations on Sturgeon and Roberts Bank, Fraser River estuary, British Columbia	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat, specifically eelgrass.
A Field Study to Determine Hazards to Birds at Roberts Bank Coalport	This report documents bird mortalities as a result of collisions with the causeway powerlines, as well as discussing potential mitigation measures.
Results of Preliminary Mark-Recapture Experiments with Juvenile Salmonids on Sturgeon and Roberts Bank, Fraser River Estuary	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Short Term Use of a Low Tide Refuge in a Sandflat by Juvenile Chinook, Fraser River Estuary	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Experimental Transplants of Brackish and Salt Marsh Species on the Fraser River Estuary	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Spatial and Temporal Patterns in Abundance of Two Intertidal Seagrasses	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat, specifically eelgrass.
Proceedings of the Fourth Pacific Coast Herring Workshop October 7-8, 1981	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Distribution of Fish Species on Roberts Bank and Sturgeon Banks Recorded in Seine and Trawl Surveys	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
An Account of a Workshop on Restoration of Estuarine Habitats	This report provides an overview of habitat restoration efforts and strategies in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.

Document Title	Summary of Document
Environmental considerations relating to marina development in the Roberts Bank causeway area of the Fraser River Estuary	This report provides the results or a review for a proposal to construct a small craft marina in the Roberts Bank area.
A Trench Through Mudflat Communities of Macroinvertebrates in Roberts bank Fraser River Delta, BC	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Zonation of Intertidal Biomass and Related Benthic Data from Sturgeon and Roberts Bank Fraser River Estuary British Columbia	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.
Environmental Program: Roberts Bank and the Fraser Estuary	This report provides the study process and results of work undertaken in the Fraser River Estuary. Primary topics include fish habitat.

Environment

Field studies

Technical advisory groups

Other environmental documents

Procurement

Market research

Technical Reports

Current forecast

Previous forecasts

Other technical documents

Communications materials

Information sheets

Community, stakeholder and public consultation materials

Preliminary Environmental Mitigation Concepts (September - October 2014)

Pre-Design Consultation (October-November 2013)

Project Definition Consultation (October-November 2012)

Pre-Consultation (June 2011)

Local government engagement materials

Mayors' Roundtable - South of Fraser

Local Government Elected Roundtable (LGER) Meeting Notes

Local Government Outreach and Engagement Summary Report (2017)

Local Government Outreach and Engagement Summary Report (2016)

Local Government Outreach and Engagement Summary Report (2015)

Local Government Outreach and Engagement Summary Report (2014)

Local Government Outreach and Engagement Summary Report (2012-2013)

Regulatory engagement materials

Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

Working group materials

Terms of Reference

Working Group Meeting 1 (February 25, 2014)

Working Group Meeting 2 (April 14, 2014)

Working Group Meeting 3 (May 27, 2014)

Working Group Meeting 4 (June 16, 2014)

Documents related to past development

Overview

Deltaport Third Berth Project

Adaptive Management Strategy

Proposed Agricultural Handling Facility

Deltaport Terminal

Expansion of Roberts Bank Port Facility

Historical studies and reports

2000 – Present

1990 – 1999

1980 – 1989

1970 – 1979