Charges Finally Laid for Sinking Barge Fiasco

Prosecutors have laid charges in the case of a barge that sank with a load of logging equipment near the killer whale habitat of Robson Bight on Vancouver Island in August 2007.

Chemainus-based logging contractor Ted LeRoy Trucking, Campbell River's Gowlland Towing and the skipper of the tugboat Kathy L each face charges of releasing oil into Johnstone Strait.

That is a violation of the Canada Shipping Act, the federal Fisheries Act and the Migratory Birds Convention Act.

The tug and barge were bound for Campbell River on the east coast of Vancouver Island when the barge tipped and spilled 11 pieces of logging equipment in the Robson Bight Ecological Reserve, known for its killer whale rubbing beaches.

The tugboat skipper also faces four charges of failing to report a dangerous incident and a crew member's injury to Transport Canada quickly enough.

The defendants are scheduled to appear in Campbell River provincial court July 21.

Following pressure from environmental groups, the federal and provincial governments promised to recover the equipment, which could still contain thousands of litres of oil and diesel fuel.