Shelburne wins court case on Farley Mowat
Court orders owner to pay more than $140,000 in costs
The Town of Shelburne has won a federal court decision granting it the right to recover more than $140,000 from the owner of the MV Farley Mowat.
The money would be for outstanding berthage fees, clean-up costs, maintenance and security costs, and legal costs incurred during the almost three years the derelict ship was tied up and abandoned at the Shelburne Marine Terminal.
The decision was handed down last month by Federal Court Judge Elizabeth Heneghan.
As part of the overall settlement, the owner, Tracy Dodds, must pay clean up costs of about $ 21,000, legal fees of nearly $50,000 and berth fees of more than $50,000. Dodds was given 30 days to appeal the decision.
Shelburne Mayor Karen Mattatall said the town is “certainly pleased with the decision” and happy that the court ruled in the town’s favour.
“This will give us the opportunity to pursue any options that may become available to us,” Mattatall said about recouping the expenses.
The Farley Mowat was removed from the Shelburne Marine Terminal on July 26, 2017, through a contract issued by the Canadian Coast Guard, which found the derelict vessel was presenting a pollution risk to the marine environment in the area.
The passage of South Shore St. Margaret’s MP Bernadette Jordan’s private member’s bill in 2016 helped pave the way for the removal. The bill called on the federal government to take meaningful steps to address the issue of abandoned vessels across the country, under the Oceans Protection Plan.
Shelburne had been trying for years to have the ship removed. The courts did order deadlines for the owner to remove it but those orders were never fulfilled and Dodds was even ordered to serve 20 days in jail for contempt of court.
During its years at the Shelburne wharf the Farley Mowatt – once the flagship vessel of the Sea Shepherd activitist group before being sold – had even caught fire and sank before being refloated.
It was a festive, party atmosphere in Shelburne on the day the vessel was finally removed, with cake served and music playing as the vessel was towed out of the harbour. It was taken to Liverpool and cut up as scrap.