Feds give green light to major expansion of marine container terminal on Canada's West Coast

The federal government has given the OK to a major new container terminal on Canada's West Coast.

It says Roberts Bank Terminal 2  in Delta will open up Canada's throttled marine supply chain, and promises environmental concerns will be addressed.

Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says the expanded terminal will increase capacity by up to 60 per cent.

The project has been in the works for over a decade and will launch with 370 legally binding conditions, including protection for fish habitat and the creation of routes for them to navigate the environment. 

Requirements also include noise monitoring and no net new noise that would affect killer whales. The Westen sandpiper, a shorebird, must also be protected.

Opposition has come from ecological groups and the longshore workers' union.

Wilkinson says the conditions should reduce some existing shipping impacts on the environment.

He highlighted the "active support" of the Musqueam First Nation and "satisfaction" from Tsawwassen First Nations with mitigation measures.

The Port of Vancouver says the terminal could take six years to build.

More to come.