HALIFAX – The Department of National Defence (DND) is proceeding with the disposal of the former HMCS Fraser, a decommissioned St. Laurent-class destroyer, through dismantlement this fall in Port Colborne, Ontario.
Fraser will be towed from the Shearwater Jetty in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, to the Marine Recycling Corporation's (MRC) facility in Port Colborne, Ontario, in late August, contingent on weather conditions and space availability in the canal system.
The disposal work will be done under an existing contract between DND and SNC Lavalin, adhering to all municipal, provincial, and federal environmental regulations. MRC is the subcontractor competitively selected by SNC Lavalin for the dismantling and disposal of Fraser.
In 1997, the Minister of National Defence donated Fraser to the Artificial Reef Society of Nova Scotia (ARSNS). Fraser had been a floating museum in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, since 1997 until a formal agreement between DND and ARSNS was reached in December 2008 to transfer Fraser back to DND. Both parties recognized that, despite the best intentions and best efforts of the ARSNS, the significant scope of maintaining Fraser proved to be beyond the capacity of the Society's resources.
After exploring various disposal options for Fraser, including preserving it for heritage purposes or sinking it to create an artificial reef, DND decided that Fraser will be dismantled for its final disposal.
Fraser was one of the first warships to be completely designed and built in Canada, and its historical value has been protected through the removal and preservation of important artefacts.
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Contact information: For further information, please contact the National Defence Media Liaison Office at 1-866-377-0811.
