The first of three new Salish Class dual-fuel ferries will debut later this year in Canada
By
Rebecca Gibson |
BC Ferries (BCF), the First Peoples’ Cultural Council and Esquimalt Nation have chosen the hull artwork for the Canadian operator’s three new Salish Class ferries.
Last August, the First Peoples’ Cultural Council invited Coast Salish artists to submit their portfolios and then nine of the 37 entrants were shortlisted to submit specific design concepts for the three Salish Class vessels. The jury reviewed the design concepts, choosing three artists who displayed Coast Salish artistic style and the ability to express the vessel names through artwork, provide digital images for fabrication and meet the deadline.
Three artists were chosen in January, including Darlene Gait from Esquimalt Nation for the Salish Orca, John Marston from Stz’uminus for the Salish Eagle and Thomas Cannell from Musqueam for the Salish Raven. Gait’s hull artwork is the first to be shared publicly; the other two designs will be revealed soon.
“Darlene’s design for the Salish Orca is a wonderful tribute to the Coast Salish people and our beautiful coast,” said Mike Corrigan, BCF’s president and CEO. “We were pleased to partner with the First Peoples’ Cultural Council and the three artists on this unique project. These new vessels will serve coastal communities for years to come and we would like to thank Darlene for capturing Esquimalt Nation’s rich coastal culture and heritage in her design. We look forward to officially welcoming the vessel into the fleet later in 2016.”
Gait’s design will also be displayed inside Salish Orca.
“I look forward to sharing my artwork,” said Gait. “It was created from a love that runs deep, a love that embraces my family today and those who we consider still with us but living in the world of spirit. The orca whales and wolves are also separated by two different worlds.”
Named in honour of the Coast Salish people and the Salish Sea where these vessels will operate, BCF’s three newbuilds are currently under construction at Remontowa Shipbuilding in Gdansk, Poland.
Scheduled to replace the 50-year old Queen of Burnaby on the Comox – Powell River route in Canada in 2016, Salish Orca has been built as a dual-fuel ferry, so she can run on both LNG and ultra-low sulphur diesel fuel. Her identical sister ships Salish Eagle and Salish Raven will arrive in late 2016 and early 2017 respectively. Both vessels will sail in the Southern Gulf Islands.
Using LNG fuel is expected to reduce BCF’s carbon dioxide emissions by around 9,000 metric tonnes per year, which is equivalent to taking 1,900 passenger vehicles off the road annually.