Vancouver Island shipbreaking company hit with pollution abatement order – BC [Video]

Residents of a Vancouver Island community are celebrating an order by the province telling a shipbreaking company to take action to stop polluting their local water.

On the shore of the Salish Sea south of Courtenay, the sight of beached ships is unmistakable.

Deepwater Recovery’s four-year-old operation here has rankled neighbours and the regional district

This week they marked what would appear to be a win for locals.

The Ministry of Environment has issued a pollution abatement order, directing the company to immediately stop the release of the elements copper, lead and zinc above approved levels.

“The good news is it shows that what we’ve been saying over the last number of years,” said Ray Rewcastle, president of the Concerned Citizens of Baynes Sound.

“That this operation has been polluting with heavy metals into Baynes Sound.”

Shipbreaking is a necessary part of the global economy.

But it is also considered a hazardous …