Mapping Burrard Inlet’s legal polluters

Centuries of colonization, urbanization and industrial activity have severely polluted Burrard Inlet, the waterway that offers protected harbour off the shores of Vancouver and other Lower Mainland municipalities.

These waters nourished Tsleil-Waututh Nation (səlilwətaɬ) for millennia, before they became a hub for global trade, home to Canada’s busiest port. But the more recent legacy of pollution has contaminated food sources and a way of life. Shellfish harvesting has been closed for half a century, and people are regularly barred from swimming at local beaches.

Tsleil-Waututh Nation is leading efforts to clean up the inlet and bring it back to life. But addressing historic pollution is only part of the challenge. As part of a broader investigation, The Narwhal compiled public documents to show just how much pollution the Government of British Columbia still allows companies to release into Burrard Inlet.

This Burrard Inlet map compiles information from provincial authorizations for 21 facilities to release contaminants into the waterway. Click on a marker to explore the details of the permits, including the amounts of specific pollutants that wastewater may still contain.

These authorized polluters include petroleum processing and shipping facilities, chemical manufacturers, concrete producers, an animal and fish rendering plant, a sugar refinery, a wastewater treatment plant, a shipyard and several bulk loading terminals where a range of products from coal to copper concentrate are shipped overseas. While some wastewater undergoes a degree of treatment, companies are not required to remove all contaminants before releasing it into the inlet.

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Investigating problems. Exploring solutions

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In some cases, the wastewater permits are in direct conflict with new water quality objectives, jointly approved by Tsleil-Waututh Nation and the province. Those objectives state, for example, that no oil or grease should be present in the inlet. But authorizations for four companies permit a combined release of 629 kilograms of oil and grease in a single day.

According to a statement, the province is working to bring permits in line with current policies and is prioritizing facilities with high environmental risks and companies that have applied for permit amendments.