World-renowned conservationist Mark Angelo is sounding the alarm over a proposed hazardous waste plant on the Fraser River he says could have devastating downstream effects for communities like New Westminster and Burnaby.
Angelo, a spokesperson for Protect the Fraser Coalition and founder of World Rivers Day, is one of the leading voices calling for the plant's proposed site to be moved.
"They picked a site that is so close to the most productive stretch of the world's greatest salmon river that's just upstream from population of Metro Vancouver. If you add all of those things together, you could not have picked a worse site," he told the NOW/Record.
Angelo is particularly concerned about a flood, earthquake or fire and the possibility of toxins flowing downstream.
"We're talking really toxic stuff, PCBs and mercury in large volumes. You have to be really careful about location," he said. "Any toxic material that would come of that site would find it's way into the Fraser immediately. ... Why play Russian Roulette with the river if you don't have to?"
Aevitas, a waste recycling company, wants to build a hazardous waste facility in a business park in Chilliwack, roughly 200 metres from the Fraser.
The plant will recycle fluorescent lamps, which contain mercury; transformer oil containing cancer-causing PCBs; and the metal from the transformers. The plant will also collect hazardous waste - like paint and chemicals - which the company would then package and ship to a proper disposal facility outside of B.C.
Chilliwack council approved a bylaw change to allow Aevitas to build the plant. The proposal is now in the hands of the Environment Ministry, which Angelo said has called for more public consultation. He also said it's not mandatory that the ministry conduct an in-depth environmental assessment, something his group is calling for, along with formal consultation with First Nations.
"Our hope is in the end the province will take a stronger stand and oppose the Riverside location in favour of a more appropriate site away from the river," Angelo said.
No one from Aevitas was available to comment. (The NOW was told the owner, Byron Day, was out of the country.) But according to the company's website, Aevitas, which already operates similar plants across the country, was looking for a site that was away from waterways and residential areas. The Fraser location was chosen, despite its proximity to the river, to avoid trucks travelling on snowy mountain roads or highly populated areas. The company also wanted to be close to highways. The site is protected by a 200-year flood dike, so the plant wouldn't be in a flood zone, and the location is nearly two kilometers from the nearest fault line.
That's still not reassuring for Angelo, who said the company's criteria is based on economic factors, while the location puts public safety and the environment at risk. He also has concerns that if the dike fails, the plant would be flooded.
"I've had a lot of experience with hazardous waste treatment plants, and I believe very strongly they are needed, but this issue is about location," he said. "You can't look solely at economic criteria. You have to look at public safety and the environment,"
On Thursday, Angelo spoke to Metro Vancouver's climate change committee on behalf of the Protect the Fraser Coalition, a group of nearly 50 groups, including first Nations, community groups and environmental organizations.
Angelo is hoping Metro Vancouver will take a stance against the site and express that to the provincial government.
The Environment Ministry and the Environmental Assessment Office have asked for more information to determine if this project needs an environmental assessment.
The ministry also stated Aevitas is required to conduct additional consultation with First Nations, stakeholders and the public, and that the application will not be reviewed until the consultation is complete and a consultation report is submitted to the ministry.
