A major new maritime project is being considered for Port Alberni. The town’s harbour authority wants to build a $1-billion container terminal at the seaward end of Alberni Inlet. If constructed, the 120-hectare facility would be the largest of its kind in Canada.
The idea is that freighters would offload their cargoes on the west shore of Vancouver Island. Ocean-going barges then transship the containers through Haro Strait to Vancouver (possibly also Seattle and Tacoma), cutting three-and-a-half days off the round trip.
That would reduce congestion at port facilities in the Lower Mainland, because unlike container ships, barges can navigate the Fraser estuary, dropping their cargo farther inland.
There would also be significant economies of scale. At present, the largest terminals in the Port of Vancouver handle 2,400 containers a day. The Alberni facility would have more than twice that capacity.
Of course, numerous obstacles lie ahead. The project is still at the conceptual stage. A $500,000 feasibility study is required before proceeding further.
After that, multiple approvals must be sought from federal, provincial, municipal and aboriginal authorities. (The terminal would be sited, in part, on land belonging to the Huu-ay-aht First Nation.)
Most important, Barkley Sound, where Alberni Inlet meets the ocean, is one of the loveliest pristine ecosystems on the west coast of North America. There are major environmental issues to be dealt with.
But what makes this idea tantalizing from a local perspective is not the fast-tracking of shipping lanes. It is the revitalizing of our Island economy.
The Alberni/Nanaimo corridor has suffered greatly in recent years. Employment in key industries, such as the forest sector and the fishery, has plummeted, causing widespread dislocation.
General unemployment in central Vancouver Island is now 40 per cent higher than the B.C. average, while youth unemployment is a staggering 65 per cent higher. A family with median income in Port Alberni earns $10,000 less per year than the same family in Victoria.
And with those financial pressures come the inevitable social costs. Indicators of unhealthy lifestyles, such as obesity and smoking levels, are sky-high.
There are also signs of persistent stress and trauma: Infant mortality in the region is 40 per cent above the provincial average; the suicide rate is 50 per cent higher.
In short, beyond the capital region, large areas of Vancouver Island are struggling badly. And this is more than a case of temporary hardship. It is the slow collapse of a century-old economic model that holds no future for many communities.
Building a container terminal at Port Alberni would help reverse the downward spiral. Four to five thousand jobs would be created during the construction phase, followed by a permanent workforce of several hundred once the facility opened. And the local service trades would gain important spinoff benefits.
Eventually, if the project is successful, it could bring about a more equitable distribution of wealth across our Island, and across our province.
However, well before we get to that point, a fundamental question must be answered. Where does the future of Vancouver Island lie?
Do we want a prosperous, though increasingly congested capital region, with a sparsely populated hinterland that survives on summer tourism and small niche industries? Or do we shift the centre of gravity somewhat, and build a new industrial power base in the Alberni/Nanaimo corridor?
It’s high time we heard from the provincial government on this matter. If any administration in the past three decades had plans to combat the socio-economic crisis in central and northwest Vancouver Island, they remain well hidden.
For now, carriage of this project rests with Port Alberni. But once the decision approaches, we all should have our say.
