Residents are split on whether they want their harbour of the future to be for shipping or recreation

By Chip Martin

Transport Canada considered dredging Port Stanley harbour this year, a document obtained by The Free Press indicates.

But the federal department decided instead to wait until port divestiture talks are complete.

And now village residents are looking at the future of the port which will determine the nature of dredging -- whether deep for shipping, or shallower recreational uses.

An aerial photo of Port Stanley harbour and Kettle Creek prepared by the Ontario Environment Ministry in late 2008 identifies the area of the harbour to be dredged in 2009. It also shows the sources of contaminants and areas of the creek sampled for them.

In January, Central Elgin Mayor Sylvia Hofhuis announced Transport Canada wouldn't dredge until talks are concluded that would transfer the port to the municipality. Before that, she said, it had been understood dredging could happen as the talks enter their fourth year.

She said the Environment Ministry document was likely a response to Transport Canada preparing for dredging.

"They are always looking at their harbour and their land," she said.

Anne Neary, regional director of the Environment Ministry, said the document was prepared for internal use by her ministry and was in response to Transport Canada plans to dredge in 2008, which was postponed.

She said if there is a plan to dredge, environmental implications must be considered by her ministry.

"This was something we were using among ourselves," she said, rather than a document prepared for Transport Canada or anyone else.

Joe Preston, the Conservative MP for Elgin-Middlesex-London said it's clear the clear the document responded to information from Transport Canada.

"They had to prepare for eventualities and one of the eventualities was I was demanding was the thing get dredged," he said.

He conceded the public has mixed feelings on the future of the port and whether ships or merely recreational boaters should be accommodated.

"I believe there will be a level of dredging needed regardless of the end result of that," Preston said. "There are navigational issues now."

If dredged to lake carrier depth, the channel would have to be the maximum seven metres (22 feet) the port could handle, he said, but from three to five metres (10 or 15 feet) for recreational purposes.

A public meeting will be held in Port Stanley on July 22 to look at proposals for the harbour as part of a $100,000 feasibility study.

Hofhuis said support for a return to a commercial harbour is limited.

"Most people would rather see it used as a more public-friendly piece of property," she said.

Port activist Dan McNeil said it appears Transport Canada has no interest in dredging the harbour this year -- "unless a divestiture deal is reached and then the only dredge will be to a depth for marinas and fishing boats."

He said the document shows continued secrecy by Transport Canada which lacks interest in cleaning up the contaminants.

"My concern now is we will only see risk mitigation with parking lots and parkland," he said.

For its part, Transport Canada has repeatedly said there will be no dredging and no cleanup until divestiture talks are wrapped up.