A roundtable meeting to discuss concerns about the Fraser River has some who took part feeling they've received nothing more than lip service.
Taking place late last month at the Delta View Centre in East Ladner, the meeting was arranged by Delta MP Carla Qualtrough, who invited several groups and concerned citizens, including Against Port Expansion (APE), the Burns Bog Conservation Society, activists and Delta residents Doug Massey and Susan Jones, Otto Langer with Vancouver Airport Project Opposition for Richmond (VAPOR), Communities and Coal, and others.
Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna did not attend, but Jonathan Wilkinson, the minister's parliamentary secretary, was there to hear about what's happening along the Fraser River and accept written submissions.
Several participants cited cumulative effects of port and industrial development in the Fraser estuary, saying the ecosystem has been seriously damaged, which is made all the worse with the accelerating loss of agricultural land throughout the Fraser delta.
Several recommendations were presented, including reforming the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority's governance and structure as well as a temporary moratorium for projects on the lower Fraser River and estuary.
Massey said there were high expectations going into the session, especially in light of the Liberal promise during last fall's election campaign to strengthen environmental regulations and processes that had been stripped by the previous government. Massey said he got the impression it will be more of the same after Wilkinson cited the need to balance the economy with the environment.
"Most of us all left with a bit of anger in that we were told that they were going to mitigate for losses. That's basically all that was said and what they're focusing on. Basically everything that's on the board right now is going to go through, the jet fuel farm, the LNG, the Fraser Surrey Docks coal facility, Terminal 2, all of those projects," Massey said. "We all did a lot of work to make our presentations, including hundred or more page reports. So it was very frustrating. We thought we elected a government that was going to listen to the public better."
APE'S Roger Emsley agreed, saying although the meeting was cordial and everyone stuck to their eight-minute presentation limit, there was a sense of disappointment.
"I really question whether he (Wilkinson) really understood and whether he was listening," Emsley said. "Aside from anything else, when I look at Minister McKenna's mandate letter, what Mr. Wilkinson was saying doesn't match. It also doesn't match what the prime minister was suggesting. Wilkinson seems to be paying lip service to community impacts, but saying it's business as usual and they aren't going to change."
Burns Bog Conservation Society president Eliza Olson said she felt more positive about the gathering,
and the fact the meeting happened at all. She said being able to pass along documents with important information is a good thing.
Qualtrough said she felt the meeting also went well and that it was a good opportunity for groups to raise their concerns.
She said the need to have a comprehensive plan for the Fraser River is a big priority.
"I think we made some good headway on the relationship building side," Qualtrough said. "There are so many complex environmental issues at play in and around Delta, so trying to navigate all these complex issues and come up with a common way forward has been very challenging.
"I agree wholeheartedly on the three buckets of issues that they put forward. The first of which was the need for a common vision for the Fraser River - a regional landuse plan and have someone look at the cumulative impacts of everything that is going on in the river."
She said the second was restoring environmental protections, while the third issue identified was the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.
"Port Metro Vancouver, I believe, has to focus on stakeholder relations more than public relations," Qualtrough added. "I think the meeting was a good start. People went in feeling like they were unheard and I hope they now feel they were heard and what was said will be put into action."
