A proposal to rezone a property in Port Mellon's Hillside industrial area to allow for a shipbreaking facility is in the pre-application phase at the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD).
Efforts to finalize the rezoning request are proceeding, according to applicant Amix Real Estate Holdings. Details of the proposed changes are not public as they are at the pre-application phase, but in an email spokesperson Mark Annable indicated that the firm will undertake professional environmental assessment of the site as well as geotechnical and riparian area reports, as required by a Dec. 14 Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) board ruling.
At that meeting, the SCRD board upheld a requirement for those additional studies, denying an appeal from Amix. Staff notified the firm of the need to provide those reports to advance the rezoning request in a proposal pre-application outcome letter dated Sept 29.
“Amix doesn’t object to the riparian or geotechnical assessment requirements – much of this work is already completed. We do not agree with the Dec. 14 SCRD Board decision but do respect it and will make the environmental assessments requested… [the decision] will delay our rezoning application and add to its cost but not unreasonably so,” Annable wrote in his email to Coast Reporter.
Speaking at the meeting, Annable characterized the additional report requirements as “an overreach” by the regional government. He stated that shipbreaking activities would not be a huge departure from the marine repair activities already permitted and carried out at the site.
What the board wants to see
The proposed rezoning to add the shipbreaking land use would permit hauling of marine craft out of the water, storing and disassembly of marine craft, and removal of disassembled waste and salvage materials from the property. In making the decision to uphold the earlier staff ruling, board members identified a need to establish baseline data on the current state of the site so that the impacts of expanding land use to include shipbreaking can be understood. Concerns were also raised about how ship components that could contain hazardous materials would be dealt with. There was also a call from shíshálh government district director Phillip Paul for Amix to ensure early involvement of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) Nation in planning for the potential project.
Elphinstone area director Donna MacMahon said she respected staff’s advice to “proceed with caution” with such a rezoning proposal. In a report on the meeting agenda, staff pointed to a need for “ensuring that a new use does not create new/different environmental concerns… the property contains a freshwater stream and coastline and is within the Átl'ka7tsem (Howe Sound) Biosphere Region and warrants upholding the request for relevant reports… (that) may consider protection measures for existing sensitive natural features and protection of fish and fish habitat, as well as measures that repair or enhance areas of concern within the property or ocean natural boundary.”
McMahon said there was a need for shipbreaking facilities to safely recycle unusable vessels rather than allowing them to sink in the ocean environment. The proposed site at 3318 McNair Forest Service Road “seems appropriate for that type of use” she stated. In her view, “this [rezoning] could be a win for everybody; for the community, the economy and the proponents. I look forward to it moving forward.”
