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u Fresh face at historic site P. 5 u Me and the Mr. Duffy P. 4
u Nak’zadli elxn launch P. 3 u Golf tournie P. 8
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WEDNESDAY, June 12, 2013
NEWS BRIEFS Fouryear-old boy hit by vehicle in Vhoof
Vanderhoof RCMP and the North District Traffic Services were on the scene of a Motor Vehicle incident involving a four-yearold boy on a bicycle last Thursday. June 1 at approximately 3 p.m. Vanderhoof RCMP were called to the collision at 4th Street East and Riley Avenue in the school zone near Evelyn Dickson Elementary School. The incident was witnessed by the boy’s 9-year-old brother who was also riding his bicycle at the time. The 22-year-old male driver was driving west bound when the little boy appeared from the south after riding down a steep grade. The boy suffered serious injuries to his face and head and was transported via ambulance to the University Hospital of Northern British Columbia. RCMP advise that alcohol was not a factor in this incident and were asking the public to stay away from the area while the traffic analyst investigated the scene. RCMP Victim Services are assisting both families who have been affected by this tragic incident.
VOL. 36 NO. 15 $1.30 inc. GST
Fort St. James Critical Mass
A small but enthusiastic group of cyclists showed up for the first ever Critical Mass event in Fort St. James. The event was part of Bike to Work Week in Fort St. James and was an attempt at raising awareness about cycling and road safety around cyclists. The group rode from Spirit Square down Stuart Drive to Necoslie Road and back again. Caledonia Courier
Nearing the last word
Final written arguments for or against the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline have been filed Ruth Lloyd Caledonia Courier Fort St. James intervenors in the Enbridge Northern Gateway Joint Review Panel process submitted their final arguments May 31. The District of Fort St. James was still the lone municipality along the proposed heavy oil pipeline to openly oppose the project, and the district reiterated this in their final written arguments. The 11-page written submission to the panel reviewing the project was prefaced by a strongly-worded letter from the District and signed by Mayor Rob MacDougall which invoked values of the people of Fort St. James, including the close ties to the land, the water and the First Nations. The letter speaks of Chief Kwah watching over the return of the salmon from where he is buried on the shores of the Stuart River, not very far upstream from where the proposed pipelines would cross it. “We rely on the land for our livelihoods and our quality of life. We are not the ‘radical environmentalists’ or advocacy groups that Northern Gate-
way opposition have been painted as in the media. A strong majority of people in our community are loggers, miners, carpenters, welders and machinists; we are industry workers who live in a resource-based local economy through which we have learned the value of sustainable industry practices. We are not drawn to this project based on the potential for jobs – labour projections already show that we have huge labour gaps to contend with, and it is suggested that Northern B.C. will be facing a labour shortage of nearly 20,000 workers by 2015. We do not want to see temporary foreign workers brought in to work on a project which puts at risk the livelihoods of resident Canadians. Our community is small. We have 1,700 residents, and thereby we are highly susceptible to the potential environmental and economic impacts that a spill or other accident along the Northern Gateway pipeline could impose. We have had numerous meetings with Enbridge representatives and while we appreciate their efforts at consultation we remain firm that they do not have a social license to operate this project in or around our communi-
ty. This is the strongly spoken opinion of our constituents and we convey their message proudly.” In the final paragraph, the letter details the strain participation in the process has put on the district. “We want to ensure that our homes, livelihoods, and the landscape we live from and appreciate are available to our future generations to ensure also that there is a future for our community to continue to thrive and flourish. It is for these reasons that we have dedicated hundreds of hours of time to researching and participating in the Enbridge JRP process. We operate a small municipal office in Fort St. James, with six administrative staff to oversee the entire operations of our community. Participating in this process has put a strain on our resources, however we have felt obliged and committed to doing so in order to fulfill our commitment to our citizens.” The letter was written and prepared by Emily Colombo, economic development officer for the District of Fort St. James based on direction from mayor and council and her previous work on the review process. The Fort St. James Sustainabil-
ity Group also filed a final argument, which provided a detailed 17-page argument against the approval or, alternatively, conditions should the project be approved. The group used excerpts from the entire review process, including submitted evidence from both Northern Gateway themselves and intervenors or government participants. The submission argued against the project based on the National Energy Board definition of “in the public interest” given many if not most of the companies producing to supply the project are either partly or mostly foreign-owned, and the group provided quotes from oral evidence given during the review process which they believe suggest the potential benefits of the project are in no way guaranteed. The group also detailed the Enbridge record on safety and spill response, which they believe calls into question Enbridge’s self-declared title of “world-class” in pipeline operations. The group then argued landowner consultation was inadequate and Northern Gateway submitted contradictory information in the application. Continued on Page 3