A barge stalled in the waters off the B.C. coast continues to take on water.
The freight barge had been transiting from Alaska to Seattle on Monday afternoon and was passing through the Fisher Channel, just east of Bella Bella, when the tug pulling the load reported the incident to the Canadian Coast Guard.
“There’s very unique ecosystems here, you know, hundreds of salmon streams, important habitat, clam beds,” William Housty with the Heiltsuk Nation said.
“There’s a laundry list of ecological reasons why we are concerned about this response.”
Housty said the Heiltsuk Nation’s Marine Emergency Response crews have also been on the scene to help with the assessment and a dive team has been in the water to take a look at what is happening underwater.
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The priority has been to relocate the barge to a place of refuge, tucking it behind Matthew Island.
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On Thursday afternoon, Transport Canada approved the salvage plan to begin removing 25 containers from the starboard side.
“Not really knowing the contents of the containers, we took some preventative measures and put some oil boom around three significant salmon streams that are in the area just in case of a spill or anything like that, but so far, things have held sturdy,” Housty said.
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Freight barge sinking off Bella Bella
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The Canadian Coast Guard tells Global News that “despite damage to the underside of the hull, the situation remains stable. There have been no reports of pollution.”
The vessel’s owner, Alaska Marine Lines, has additional assets arriving on the scene.
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However, the incident has reignited concerns from the Heiltsuk First Nation, calling for a stronger marine emergency response along B.C.’s coast.
“Heiltsuk doesn’t have the capacity to be responding to even the current situation, let alone an oil tanker,” Housty said.
“Neither does any other coastal First Nation, neither does B.C. and neither does Canada.”
That warning comes as the federal government considers lifting the moratorium on tanker traffic to be able to run a pipeline from Alberta to Northern B.C.
“So, it’s very concerning, there’s been such an increase in these kinds of incidents… It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when something like this is going to happen,” Housty said.
The barge will be held overnight and reassessed on Friday before the rest of the salvage plan is finalized.
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