Smelting entirely possible under proposed zoning
Rebuttal of Ms. Reich’s erroneous letter (“Anti-estuary rezoning advocate makes ‘wild accusation’”, Citizen, March 20).
Ms. Reich, all due respect, “Dr.” is a title not a “prefix” and I use it because I’ve earned it.
My “wild accusation” regarding the reference to metal smelting comes right from your employer’s consultant’s submission. It may be found in a list of “…activities which are occurring on the site…” on page 5 of a report prepared by TerraWest Environmental Oct. 17, 2017 and submitted to the CVRD by Sharon Horsburgh of Bayshore Planning Services Inc. on behalf of Western Stevedoring on Oct. 18, 2017 . And I quote from Schedule 2 of page 5:
“Category C. Metal smelting, processing or finishing industries and activities”.
B.C. Regulation 375/96; from the B.C. Contaminated Sites Regulation describes Category C activities as:
“1. FOUNDRIES OR SCRAP METAL SMELTING 2. galvanizing 3. Metal plating or finishing 4. Metal salvage operations 5. NONFERROUS METAL SMELTING OR REFINING 6. welding or machine shops (repair or fabrication)”
In that list I don’t see a single activity that is harmless to a sensitive marine ecosystem, let alone as ocean levels rise and impinge on our current shores (refer to the fifth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the dire warnings issued regarding expected sea level rise). The Official Community Plan of Area D has flagged the terminal area as the most ecologically sensitive and recognizes it as: “one of the world’s most biologically important areas for fish, waterfowl and wildlife.” The OCP states further: “Yet land and water-based activities have threatened the estuary and its dependent species such as Chinook salmon, shellfish, waterbirds and eelgrass.”
The word ‘dependent’ means the Chinook, shellfish, waterbirds and eelgrass can’t easily go live somewhere else but a human run business certainly can. The Chinook nursery in the estuary is essential to the survival of the last remaining southern resident orca as these Chinook tend to inhabit the Salish Sea providing sustenance for starving orca. As per the Recovery Strategy for Northern and Southern Residents, the most urgent recognized threats are “prey availability (in particular, Chinook salmon), chemical and biological pollutants and physical and acoustic disturbance.”
That a business has been operating illegally on the terminal for years is clearly contentious enough without rezoning permitting Category C activities like smelting to occur, now or in the future. These activities would be irresponsible and just wrong to be located in one of the world’s most biologically important ecosystems regardless of how many jobs are truly provided. As Winston Churchill said: “It’s no use saying ‘we are doing our best’. You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary.” And it is long overdue and very necessary that we practice reverence for nature if we’d like to continue living on this jewel of a planet. We had best be protecting Cowichan Estuary in perpetuity!
Dr. Brenda Bernhardt
CVRD Resident