The Port of Vancouver will limit the discharge of contaminated water from the scrubbers that ships use to remove sulphur out of exhaust.
As of March 1, ships that are anchored in the port or moored at a berth will be banned from discharge of scrubber wash water, but it will still be permitted if the wash water is coming from a main engine scrubber.
The port states that scrubber water can have poison marine life due to the presence of pollutants such as metals, hydrocarbons and sulphurous and nitrous acids.
In fact, a study commissioned by the port in 2019 that focused on the Burrard Inlet found discharge noted that it “could result in concentrations of metals that exceed thresholds set for the protection of aquatic life.”
The port’s scrubber wash water restrictions are being phased in, with the ultimate goal being to fully restrict the release of any wash water from any of a ship’s systems anywhere in the port’s waters.
The port also states that ships will have to hold their wash water or connect to power while docked instead of running their own generators. They also recommend ship owners burn low sulphur fuels, however this fuel is not always compatible with older engines.
The new restriction comes as the City of Vancouver councillor Pete Fry presents a motion to council asking that the Union of B.C. Municipalities lobby the provincial and federal governments to stop scrubber dumping from ships and require cleaner fuels be used.
