Ocean Choice is in the regulatory stages of a proposed development in Long Pond that could see the development of new land, an appoximate 90-metre wharf, as well as the construction of a new cold storage facility. The business plan for the project is still being finalized and a decision to proceed with the development has not yet been made.
Overview of Development
The project is located on the southern portion of the Long Pond Port, off Terminal Road in an existing commercial area. The waterlot for the proposed development (previous Transport Canada Port) was purchased by Ocean Choice in April of 2018 from the Long Pond Harbour Authority.
The Company’s proposed development will see approximately 17,000 m2 (1.7 hectares) of new land developed that will house:
- Approximate, 90-metre long marginal wharf;
- Laydown and parking area;
- Cold storage building infrastructure (approximately 36,000 ft²).
- 43 foot-high building
Ocean Choice Plans to Adapt its Proposed Development Plan for Long Pond Harbour
Over the last number of years, Ocean Choice’s proposed development in Long Pond Harbour has been undergoing a stringent regulatory review with all three levels of government. To date, the proposed development has received several of the required approvals.
Today, as part of the regulatory process for the proposed development, Ocean Choice received notification from the Federal Department of Transport Canada’s Navigable Waters Protection Division that their review of the initial application is complete. While approval could not be issued at this time, Navigable Waters provided recommendations for Ocean Choice to include in an updated application that should see the development proceed. Over the next couple of weeks, Ocean Choice will review the recommendations made by Navigable Waters and the Company will follow the advice provided by them to resubmit the proposal under their normal procedures.
Since the beginning of August, Ocean Choice has been soliciting feedback and input relating to its proposed development plan for Long Pond Harbour from interested parties in the area. In response to this input and further guidance from Navigable Waters, the Company is making some adjustments to the development plan for the area. The updated plan will be released within the coming weeks.
Quotes
“Maintaining safe access to the channel for those who currently use the area for recreation and/or business purposes is of the utmost importance to us,” said Blaine Sullivan, President, Ocean Choice. “Through this process with Navigable Waters, we were hoping that the experts within the Department would provide guidance on safe navigation for the area, which is what we received.”
“We are focused on being a good neighbor for the existing businesses, residents and others who currently utilize the Long Pond Harbour for either pleasure or business purposes,” said Sullivan. “We are committed to investing in a development that will complement the existing commercial activity while balancing the recreational use of the harbor – we know this is important and it is how the harbour has always operated.”
Cold storage operations are very different than operating a fish plant. Many seafood cold storage facilities in Newfoundland and Labrador are located within the heart of the community with minimal disruption to community life and are similar to the operation of other food cold storage facilities.
How a seafood cold storage facility operates: Frozen-at-sea product is offloaded from offshore fishing vessels and stored at the cold storage facility in its frozen state until the product is shipped to global markets. No processing takes place at the cold storage facility, resulting in no odour.
The proposed development is currently going through rigorous regulatory reviews and approvals with the appropriate regulatory bodies with the federal, provincial and municipal governments. We are committed to working with the proper authorities and we will adhere to any mitigation measures identified through this process. As part of our planning for the development, we are committed to safety and mitigating potential impacts. We are working with a third-party engineering firm to review currents, tidal activity and ice flow. The results of this work will be shared with interested parties.
We understand the importance of maintaining access to the channel for those who currently use the area for recreation and/or business purposes. For this reason, as part of the proposed development, Ocean Choice plans to create a new, more direct, marked channel along the edge of the property. The new channel will be developed with the safety of users in mind and will be as deep as the current channel used by boaters.
What activity will you expect to see?
Five offshore fishing vessels will land each month:
- Approximately, four shipments of frozen seafood will be trucked from the facility per day.
- On average a vessel will take two to three days to offload. Offloading is carried out with the use of a forklift.
- Four to five delivery trucks per vessel, per turn around for fueling, food and supply delivery.
- Changeover of crew members.
- Vessel landing and offloading as well as cold storage operations and the shipment of frozen product will occur on Terminal Road — the commercial side of the harbour.
We want to hear from you!
Ocean Choice is committed to being open and accessible. This begins with taking your questions and comments, and providing you with a way to engage with us on what matters to you.
Submit your questions below and we will post the answers.
About Ocean Choice
Ocean Choice is a family-owned and -operated Newfoundland and Labrador company that employs over 1,700 people in 300 communities throughout the province. We operate five fish processing plants and six offshore fishing vessels, and we source seafood from over 1,900 independent fishermen and women from across the province.
