News
On a map, Gelotti showed two possible tanker routes. Route (A) would go from the Woodfibre plant straight down the east sides of Gambier and Bowen and then into the Salish Sea. On Route (B) tankers could travel through the passage between Gambier Island and Howe Sound Pulp and Paper, pass the Langdale terminal, go by the north end of Keats up the east side of Keats ( between Keats and Bowen) and then into the Salish Sea.
If the tankers travel on route (A), the tankers intersect with three ferry routes: Langdale-Horseshoe Bay, Horseshoe Bay-Bowen Island and Horseshoe Bay-Departure Bay. On route (B), they intersect with the Langdale ferry and the Vancouver Island one.
Gelotti and Woodfibre LNG Marine Transport expert Lloyd Mendosa said there will be no possibility of disruption of the ferry services. There would be co-ordination with BC Ferries. The tankers would always travel with three tug boats and two pilots. They said the 294-meter vessels travelling at 8-10 knots would be able to stop any time. Most of the tankers would travel in the evening or at night. The tankers would make 40 trips a year.
Although only three to four return trips a month are foreseen at this point, Fortis BC Project Director Art Kanzaki said that there are plans to expand the project beyond what is put forward now.
Hearing that LNG tankers may pass by Langdale, several people from the Sunshine Coast asked Gelotti if he would support an open house meeting in Gibsons. He said he did. Gelotti and Kanzaki of Fortis BC suggested that people wanting an open house in Gibsons should contact the Environmental Assessment Office.
There have been open houses in Squamish, West Vancouver, Bowen Island and Gambier Island. Due to the high level of public interest, the deadline for public comments to the Environmental Assessment Office about the Woodfibre LNG Project was already extended from 45 to 60 days. That period ended on March 23.
To ask for an open house in Gibsons, contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and go to: www.eao.gov.bc.ca for online comment forms.
Woodfibre LNG Limited has set up an interactive website askwoodfibrelng.ca allowing people in the community to ask questions they may have about the Woodfibre LNG Project.
Woodfibre LNG Limited is a Canadian company based in Vancouver and is a subsidiary of Pacific Oil & Gas Limited, which is part of the Singapore-based RGE Royal Golden Eagle group of companies that focus on resource-based manufacturing industries.
Margot Grant is an investigative reporter from The Netherlands. She worked for Dutch Radio 1 and won two awards for Best European Documentary for documentaries about climate change in Canada. She also won a Dutch award for investigative reporting. From 2004 until 2012 she was correspondent for Canada and Western United States for Dutch media including Radio 1 and Max TV. In 2012, she retired. Margot Grant lives in Gibsons.