Delta has stepped up to the plate in the fight against the plan to erect radio transmission towers in Point Roberts.
On Monday night, Delta council voted to send letters to Whatcom County, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Industry Canada.
BBC Broadcasting Inc. wants to construct five 45-metre (150-foot) steel towers at an undeveloped lot on McKenzie Way just south of the border.
The towers would transmit South Asian radio station KRPI, AM 1550, which broadcasts from studios in Richmond to a Lower Mainland audience. Also known as Sher-E-Punjab AM 1550, the company currently broadcasts using antenna in Ferndale, Wash. Residents on both sides of the border have vehemently opposed the proposal, expressing concerns about the economic, environmental and social impacts, complaints about the process, as well as blanketing interference of radio waves, which has been reported in Ferndale.
"Given the scale of the proposal and the level of community concern on both sides of the border, it is recommended that a letter be sent to Whatcom County advising that Delta council does not support any proposal that could potentially cause adverse effects to the residents of Tsawwassen and that essentially moves a problem from one community to another," Sean McGill, director of human resources and corporate planning, said in a report to council.
In his report, McGill said that Whatcom County's regulations are set to ensure that proposals will not adversely affect nearby residents.
The letter to Whatcom County will reiterate concerns voiced by Delta residents, as well as the point that if the proposal has the potential to cause adverse effects on residents that it must be denied consistent with the county's regulations.
Delta is writing to the FCC to request clarification on blanketing interference, including what assurances can be made that residents in Tsawwassen and Point Roberts will not experience the same problems reported in Ferndale.
A third letter will be sent to Industry Canada asking it to intervene on behalf of local residents. Delta is also asking for clarification on the agency's role should the proposal proceed and adversely impact Tsawwassen residents.
"The regulation and permitting of these types of installations in both Canada and the United States is a federal issue and this is where the issue needs to be resolved," McGill said in his report.
