KAMLOOPS THIS WEEK THURSDAY
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APRIL 13, 2017 | Volume 30 No. 44
MORE ELECTION CAMPAIGN NEWS • Where to vote, how to vote, who can vote • Why you won’t see Liberal candidates at all forums • B.C. Election 2017 Notebook
PAGES A10, A11
BC ELECTION May 9, 2017
#bcelxn17 • #kamvotes
KAMLOOPS-SOUTH
THE AJAX QUESTION
WHERE DO CANDIDATES STAND ON MINING PROPOSAL? Bepple said her stance on Ajax “is not being for or against. “The assessment process the Liberals have undertaken is flawed . . . The division in our community is a reflection of the failure of the B.C. Liberals to have a meaningful assessment process. “Going forward, the NDP is committed to a full, fair and strengthened environmental review.”
NANCY BEPPLE, NDP
“No. “A two-letter answer — simple.”
DONOVAN CAVERS, GREEN
TODD STONE, LIBERAL
May 9, 2017
#bcelxn17 • #kamvotes
KAMLOOPS-NORTH
DAN HINES, GREEN
“The mine is a terrible idea. The benefits have been grossly exaggerated by the proponent and the people of Kamloops have been subject to a multi-million-dollar spending campaign by KGHM that’s intended to purchase silence and compliance. “The mining industry is the biggest donor to the Liberal party, so you have to have a high level of skepticism that there’s going to be an independent and evidentiary review of the mine proposal.” PETER KEREK, COMMUNIST
“If we’re trying to attract doctors, it’s not a good idea to have an open-pit mine right outside of town . . . We’re going further than that [saying no]. “In our platform, we’re looking to take those industries into public hands. Not just Ajax, but Mount Polley and the railways.”
BEAT KLOSSNER, COMMUNIST
“It’s too close to the city, it’s too big a project. The risks are too great for the benefits of the project. And the Ajax project also reveals the failures of the environmental-assessment process and the way we’ve set up resource development in the province.” Hines also notes the Greens are the only provincial party to sign a declaration of support for the Stk’emlupsemc te Secwepemc Nation (the Tk’emlups and Skeetchestn bands) after its independent panel review rejected the mine.
BC ELECTION
“It’s not a yes or no answer . . . We have to ensure the maximum protection for human health and the environment. That’s why I support the bar being so high with the process. “The proponent has the legal right to a fair and transparent evaluation and hearing as to the merits of its proposals. We have to let the environmental process unfold and play out. At the end of the day, the statutory decision makers in the environment ministry and mining and their federal government counterparts will make the decision based on the recommendations from the environmentalassessment office. Whether it’s yes or no, we’ll have to find a way to bring the community back together.”
“I’ve said the same thing for seven-and-a-half years. “They’re going through a process and it’s a very well spelledout process. “I have concerns, but I’m willing to give them the benefit of being able to demonstrate what they’re planning on doing and then have that looked at as to whether it’s practical and doable.” PETER MILOBAR, LIBERAL “What we want to do is improve the environmental assessment process. “[Premier] Christy Clark has failed to protect the people of this community and ensure they have faith in the environmental assessment process. “We need to get to a yes or a no that people can have faith in.” BARB NEDERPEL, NDP