VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – In the case of a major oil spill in Burrard Inlet, up to 90 per cent of the gunk could end up hitting our shores within hours, according to new computer modelling.

A Vancouver city councillor says this modelling was done, given Kinder Morgan has failed to answer questions related to its emergency response plans.

The modelling goes through four separate spill scenarios, which predict 50 to 90 per cent of the material would hit the shores within hours.

City Councillor Andrea Reimer says the decision was made to look at a computer model given Kinder Morgan has declined to provide its emergency response plan to cities along the Trans Mountain.

“To date, Kinder Morgan has not provided adequate answers to these questions and, in fact, won’t even disclose details of their emergency preparedness and response plans,” she tells us.

“This… is based on 20 per cent of a fully loaded tanker. What we saw from the last spill, which was 2,700 litres — this is 16 million litres — is that there would be extreme impacts on human health [and ecological health],” says Reimer.

The expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline would increase tanker traffic in Burrard Inlet from the current five to 34 ships a month.

Genwest Systems carried out the modelling, which was commissioned by the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby and the Tsleil-Waututh nation.

Animation of an oil spill scenario at English Bay, from Genwest Systems:

Maps of the scenario, from Genwest Systems: