Roberts Bank Terminal 2 (RBT2), Canada

Roberts Bank Terminal 2 (RBT2) is a major container terminal expansion led by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA), located at Roberts Bank in Delta, British Columbia. Its purpose is to increase container terminal capacity on Canada’s West Coast to support growing trade demand. The project comprises a new three-berth marine terminal situated at the seaward end of an existing causeway, immediately adjacent to current port facilities. Key elements include a quay wall of approximately 1,300 meters, a dredged berth pocket to accommodate large container vessels, and about 320 acres (roughly 130 hectares) of new industrial land (Government of Canada, 2026), supported by widening of the existing causeway to accommodate additional road, rail, and utility infrastructure (Maritime Magazine, 2025). In May 2025 the port authority forecast early works in 2027, major land reclamation from 2028 and terminal operations in the mid-2030s (Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, 2025).

A central focus of the planning process was minimizing environmental impact through early site selection and layout optimization. Multiple terminal location options at Roberts Bank were assessed (Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, 2020). The port authority states that the selected layout places the terminal in subtidal waters away from sensitive shorebird stopover habitat (Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, n.d.). Further refinements to the terminal footprint, including a rounded northwest corner, were incorporated to reduce the potential for seabed scour and sediment deposition (Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, 2026).

The project is supported by a comprehensive environmental management program developed in consultation with First Nations, and the port authority has mutual benefits agreements in place with 27 First Nations (Government of Canada, 2026). These agreements do not by themselves show that every consulted Nation supports the project. Habitat offsetting commitments include creating and restoring 102 hectares of high-value habitat in collaboration with First Nations (Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, n.d.), alongside follow-up monitoring programs, including for biofilm, required under the federal decision statement (Government of Canada, 2023). The integration of coastal process modeling, environmental assessment, and stakeholder input at the planning stage enabled the selection of a site layout that reduces overall environmental footprint and supports more sustainable long-term operations. The port authority presents the layout, informed by coastal process modeling, environmental assessment and stakeholder input, as intended to limit environmental effects. Operational outcomes are not yet available because the terminal has not been built.