Editor:
An open letter to B.C. Minister of Environment George Heyman:
I am writing to express my serious concerns over the construction directly under and around the Burnaby city hall herons. The City of Burnaby is widening Deer Lake Avenue and adding a multi-use paved trail and upgrading the south sidewalk. The City of Burnaby contract number is CA-3094. This project does have a Ministry of Environment permit.
This permit and work directly under the heron nests is a risky one for sure.
I can assure all that the herons have already been pushed out of the tree habitat where the construction crews have been working and are working today. The herons use all of the close-by trees in the area to gather and break off branches to build their nests during this nesting season.
The crews are working a few hundred metres east of the nest site the past few weeks. They plan to start working directly under the nests starting this week. This work is incredibly loud.
It also involves using heavy machinery from large excavators, scissor jacks, drills, jack hammers and ongoing dump trucks etc.
My fear and many bird experts in Burnaby is that the herons will leave this nesting site for good if this work continues during nesting season. As you know well, Great Blue Herons are at risk and a blue listed species here in B.C. They are highly vulnerable to noise and construction disturbances etc.
A little history on this nesting site. These herons were driven away from the mouth of the Coquitlam River Colony five years ago. This as the two years of pile driving and construction of the new Port Mann Bridge were far too much for the herons.
I understand that there will be an environmental monitor on site during construction. This will help a bit, however when herons leave an established nesting site, they leave quickly. This construction is a serious risk to these herons.
It would be a shame if we lost these herons twice in five years due to Ministry of Environment development permits.
Time is critical with this issue.
John Preissl, Burnaby
