Transport Canada officially transfers Rock Bay property to the Esquimalt Nation and Songhees Nation

VICTORIA, Dec. 6, 2016 /CNW/ - Today, Jonathan Wilkinson, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Member of Parliament for North Vancouver, on behalf of the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, announced the transfer of three parcels of land totalling 1.707 hectares in Rock Bay, British Columbia, from Canada to a partnership of the Esquimalt Nation and the Songhees Nation. With the transfer, the Esquimalt Nation and Songhees Nation will have a significant presence in Victoria Harbour.

Transport Canada worked together with the two Nations to facilitate the parties coming together to make this transfer possible. The Rock Bay property required extensive remediation before it could be transferred. The final phase of the remediation project began in 2014 and was completed earlier this year. It involved the remediation of the remaining uplands and the sediments in the bay itself. Approximately 290,000 tonnes of contaminated sediments were removed from the Rock Bay property in the last 12 years.

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"I was able to visit the site in July and met with both the Esquimalt Nation and Songhees Nation. I saw firsthand the trust, openness and cooperation between the Nations and Transport Canada. I am very pleased to see that after the successful remediation of Rock Bay, this property is now transferred to the Nations."

The Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport

"I am pleased to officially announce the transfer of Rock Bay to the Esquimalt Nation and Songhees Nation, after years of working with the Nations to make this happen. This is an example of Canada and the Nations building a relationship which yields results."

Jonathan Wilkinson, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Member of Parliament for North Vancouver

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SOURCE Transport Canada

MP Jonathan Wilkinson, Constituency Office, Brittany Barnes, 604-775-6333, [email protected]; Delphine Denis, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, Ottawa, 613-991-0700, [email protected]; Media Relations, Transport Canada, Ottawa, 613-993-0055, [email protected]