Dennyman, good post.
When this issue first surfaced I thought common sense would prevail and the plan, if not totally squashed, would at least be put on hold until such time as a full and complete environmental assessment was done. Now unfortunately, I’m not so confident this will happen.
The good news is David Lamson, FVRD Electoral District E, has forwarded this latest aquifer information to about everyone who can have input on this decision.
Let’s hope they understand the importance and potential consequences and call for a full environmental review. I applaud David for this; it’s not often you see politicians as resolute and committed.
Question: where is our Environment Minister, Barry Penner on this? Not his department I know, but this is his backyard. C’mon Barry say something …
Kudos to all the people out there busting their ***’s over this; you know who you are.
My answer to David and all the people he sent the video links too including Penner and other politicians.
Thanks David for this, I have posted the video links on our fishing web site fishingwithrod.com where they should get some more exposure. We also have been posting more information as it comes in about this terrible idea of a gavel mine in this precious part of the Chilliwack River Valley that you and so many others have been working so hard to protect over the last number of years. Gravel, as you know has been taken out of the Vedder River and the Fraser River the last few years which is a concern to many of us as well, due to the damage we feel it is doing to fish and sturgeon habitat. We saw what happened in 2006 on Big Bar on the Fraser River when millions of pink alviens were killed due to an access road to the gravel mining site being constructed across a spawning channel which dewatered the redds of the pinks and chum salmon..I never understood why charges were not laid in this case.
Of course those that are pushing these projects say it is for flood protection when studies, especially on the Fraser River say it helps very little if at all. I and many others feel it is more about the thirst for gravel and this proposal in Area "E" of the FVRD reinforces this when you see this gravel mine being considered in a very sensitive area of the Valley. Then there would be the gravel truck traffic traveling on a very winding and narrow roadway not to mention the damage that will occur to the roadbed's paved surface. The City of Chilliwack saw the damage this year on Camp River Road as hundred's of trucks taking loads of gravel off Gill Bar traveled the road for a few weeks this spring. I have asked for what the total cost was but I have not received an answer yet but I saw in the paper the contractor does cover the costs incurred for the road repairs so the taxpayer does not pick up the costs. Public safety because of the increased truck traffic also has to be a major concern to the residents you represent as the FVRD director of this area.
Many of us are concerned about the lack of environmental assessments being done on projects like this proposal, as well as the lack of public input and it appears a lot of projects are just rubber stamped. Some of this may be caused due to cutback of staffing levels and lack of funds in the environment ministries, both Federally and Provincially.
I am so glad there is people like the Friends of the Chilliwack River Valley and their partners CRV Ratepayers and ecoLogic BC who care so passionately about protecting this jewel of an area and are doing every thing they can to accomplish this, one can hope all our levels of government will do so as well.
Kindest regards,
Chris