Featured Project
Artificial Reef Pilot Project Program for Marine Habitat Enhancement
Location
Prince Rupert, BC
Key Services
Design of reef elements. Pilot project construction of same through to full scale implementation.
Description
Milestone Environmental Contracting Inc. and Keystone Environmental Ltd. designed, constructed and deployed reef structures, with enhanced bottom sediments, for a Canadian National Railway sustainability initiative. This pilot program repurposed concrete rail-ties to build marine reefs in a Prince Rupert working harbour. The reefs will improve productivity of fish and marine life by increasing habitat vertically. Initial dive monitoring five months after installation showed marine life already beginning to use the reef structures as habitat. This initiative received wide scale support from the local community, First Nations, and local, Provincial and Federal Government. Transport Canada approved the project under the Navigation Protection Act after extensive consultations with the Prince Rupert Port Authority and local First Nations, including Kitsumkalum, Lax Kw’alaams Band, Gitga’at Nation, Gitxaala Nation, Meklakatla First Nation and Kitselas First Nation.
Key Challenges
The success of this project hinged on managing the delicate balance of various environmental factors, such as temperature, depth, shape, chemical concentrations, and pH, as reefs are susceptible to these fluctuations.
Key Solutions
The project team responded to this challenge by developing an advanced reef design considering architectural and structural components. The design aimed not only to minimize adverse impacts on marine life but also to encourage and nurture the growth of marine flora and fauna.
Project Scope
This initiative received broad-scale support from the local community, First Nations, and local, Provincial and Federal Government. Transport Canada approved the project under the Navigation Protection Act after extensive consultations with the Prince Rupert Port Authority and local First Nations, including Kitsumkalum, Lax Kw’alaams Band, Gitga’at Nation, Gitxaala Nation, Meklakatla First Nation and Kitselas First Nation.
Indigenous Engagement:
Vision:
This initiative received broad-scale support from the local community, First Nations, and local, Provincial and Federal Government. Transport Canada approved the project under the Navigation Protection Act after extensive consultations with the Prince Rupert Port Authority and local First Nations, including Kitsumkalum, Lax Kw’alaams Band, Gitga’at Nation, Gitxaala Nation, Meklakatla First Nation and Kitselas First Nation.
Outcome:
This project was unique to the rail industry and field of marine restoration, both in Canada, the US and abroad, in that it was the first time that scrap concrete rail ties have been re-purposed for fish habitat enhancement. Additionally, the project provided a beneficial reuse option for concrete railway ties, which would otherwise be stockpiled on right-of-way land or landfilled.
Remarkably, just five months after installation, initial dive monitoring revealed that marine organisms were already beginning to adopt these innovative reef structures as sanctuaries. In recognition of its technological innovation and positive environmental impact, this project received the Environmental Managers Association (EMA) Award in 2019.
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