ARUNDEL GALLERY HAS ART IN MIND
page
3
AT HOME WITH DEMENTIA
page
6
FORMER TRUSTEE STARS IN PLAY
page
8
The Burr Block kicks off a week of 120th anniversary celebrations beginning Sunday. See Page A14
FRIDAY
APRIL 13 2012
www.newwestnewsleader.com
Cleanup aims to bring people together Grace Escudero newwestnewsleader.com
COLLEEN FLANAGAN/BLACK PRESS FILE
Wildlife rehabilitation specialists help a Canada Goose covered in oil following the 2007 Kinder Morgan pipeline rupture in Burnaby. The saline solution is used to try and remove the oil so the goose’s eyes don’t burn.
What happens if there’s an oil spill? Kinder Morgan Canada is expected to soon announce it will seek to twin its Trans Mountain Pipeline between northern Alberta and Burnaby. The twinning would mean a huge increase in the amount of crude that transits the pipeline and the number of oil tankers travelling local waters. This second instalment of a three-part Black Press series looks at the risks involved.
Wanda Chow Black Press
Ask an environmentalist what they think of the potential for a massive crude oil spill in Burrard Inlet and invariably they bring up the Kalamazoo River near Marshall, Michigan. That’s where in July 2010 an Enbridge pipeline ruptured, releasing 19,500 barrels (3.1 million litres) of oil into the nearby river, making it the largest inland oil spill in the history of the U.S. Midwest. More than 18 months later, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
continues to struggle to clean up the mess. So what does an inland oil spill three thousand kilometres away have in common with what could happen here in Greater Vancouver? Well, the spectre of an oil spill is being raised in light of Kinder Morgan Canada’s proposal to twin its Trans Mountain pipeline from Edmonton to Burnaby. The company has yet to make a formal application to the National Energy Board, but the project is aimed at exports of bitumen crude oil from the Alberta oil sands to China, on supertankers that could hold as much as one million barrels.
water
‘WORST CRUDE OF ALL’ The common denominator is bitumen crude, a less re¿ned crude thick as molasses that contains additives to allow it to Àow freely enough to travel through pipelines. “Of all the crude oil in the world, bitumen from the tar sands is the worst of all,” said Rex Weyler, co-founder of Tanker Free B.C., a group that wants to see oil tankers banned from B.C.’s coast. When bitumen hits water, it separates into gases, creating a toxic cloud that includes toluene and benzene, known carcinogens, Weyler said. Please see FUNDS, EQUIPMENT, A12
99
PAINTING Starting at $
artscouncilnewwest.org
April 12-14, 2012
00
* PER ROOM
3 room minimum. Paint & labour included. Ask for details.
We only use low VOC and ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY paint
BOOK TODAY
604.803-5041 Brent Klemke OWNER/MANAGER
www.benchmarkpainting.ca
New Westminster residents will have an opportunity to spiff up Moody Park on Saturday, April 21 during a community cleanup organized by Neighbours Into More Beautiful Environments (NIMBÉ). According to NIMBÉ, it is “an initiative to bring the community together to remover litter and trash from the environments that people share and enjoy.” Joshua Pablo, founder of NIMBÉ, said the name is a play off the acronym NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard). “We all belong to the same community so I feel that taking part in this event shows how proud you are of where you live and how you want to give back to it,” said Pablo. Participants will meet at 10 a.m. at the Moody Park spray park for the clean-up, which will last about 90 minutes. Participants are encouraged to register on the website before participating. For further information visit http://nimbe. robsonglen.com.