Cleanup work to remove hazardous substances from Victoria Harbour is scheduled to begin this month.
Transport Canada has awarded a $5.3-million contract to Milestone Environmental Contracting Inc. to remove hazardous materials from the seabed around Laurel Point Park.
The cleanup is part of a remediation project to help restore the bay and foreshore areas, said Annie Joannette, spokeswoman for Transport Canada.
About 1,200 cubic metres of contaminated sediments will be dredged, Joannette said.
The process, expected to be completed in January, will involve dredging contaminated sediment and transporting it by barge to an approved facility for treatment and disposal.
The harbour bed will be back-filled with clean material.
Monitoring of sediment and water quality is a high priority, the federal department said.
“Undertaking the remediation of Victoria’s [harbour] demonstrates our government’s ongoing commitment to cleaning up contaminated sites and protecting the marine environment,” Minister of Transport Marc Garneau said in a statement.
“This work is important for the well-being of the marine wildlife that call Victoria Harbour their home and feeding ground.”
A paint factory occupied Laurel Point (beside the Inn at Laurel Point) from 1906 until the mid-1970s. Factory operations left sediments in the water bordering Laurel Point Park.
