The NDP wants to give Canadians more time to weigh in on a proposed Metro Vancouver shipping terminal that Environment Canada scientists warn would have a disastrous environmental impact.
On Monday, NDP MP Richard Cannings stood up during question period to ask the federal government to extend its consultation process for the proposed Roberts Bank Terminal 2 project because “critical information” was not available to the public. The public comment period will end on February 13 and the environment minister will decide sometime after that.
“Certainly we will look at all of the science, including the science regarding migratory birds, regarding the impacts of noise and other issues that came up along the way,” Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said in response to Cannings. ‘ question.
Throughout the project’s environmental assessment, Environment Canada scientists raised concerns about its impact on shorebirds, particularly the western shorebird, a shorebird species unique to the west coast of North America that forages in the nutrient-rich Fraser Delta during migration.
The scientists’ final statements before the federal review panel completed: “Project-induced changes at Roberts Bank pose an insurmountable species-level risk to western sandpiper and shorebirds in general.” The only way to avoid impacts, according to scientists, “is with a redesign of the project.”
“Basically, we’re going to see a reduction in the number of western sandpipers that are found on the Pacific coast and the numbers are worrying enough to think about listing the species as threatened or endangered if we see the kind of decline that’s expected.” is producing. warned,” said James Casey, an expert on the Fraser River estuary with birds canada.
But that document was never presented to the panel.
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These closing comments are akin to presenting a closing argument before a judge, said Roger Emsley, executive director of Against Port Expansion, who obtained the document through an access to information request.
In a statement to Canadian National Observer, Environment and Climate Change Canada said it has always been clear about risks to shorebirds. Because of this, the department said a closing filing was not necessary because it would not “alter or add value” to information already on the record.
Emsley was not satisfied with this response because he said the review panel did not want any new information; he asked for a summary of the position of each participant in the project.
In #questionperiod, @canningsNDP asked the federal government if it would extend the public comment period on the proposed #RobertsBak shipping terminal in Delta, BC #cdnpoli
Last week, the NDP wrote to the Minister for the Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault, asking him to update the information on the Impact Assessment Agency website to make clear the draft conditions does not address the project’s adverse effects on shorebirds and adds comments from Environment Canada refuting claims by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority that it can recreate sensitive marsh ecosystems.
Once that information is readily accessible, the NDP wants the public comment period extended to “allow for a more informed response.” The letter also recommends “an independent expert review of the research” to address the gulf between the port authority’s claim that it can mitigate environmental damage and Environment Canada’s scientific conclusion that there is currently no way to do so.
“Liberals like to talk a lot about protecting the environment, but in reality, they are doing no better than conservatives by refusing to follow the science,” Laurel Collins, environmental and climate change critic for the NDP, said in a statement. send by email.
Natasha Bulowski / Local Journalism Initiative / Canadian National Observer