B.C. Parks wants you to send public input on boundary changes to Kinder Morgan

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      If Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain expansion gets built, land must be removed from Finn Creek, North Thompson River, and Bridal Veil provincial parks, and Lac du Bois Grasslands Protected Area for the pipeline corridor.

      A public comment period on the proposed park boundary changes closes October 12. But B.C. Parks doesn't want to hear directly from you.

      On its website, B.C. Parks opts to "encourage" people to submit their comments to Kinder Morgan. "Trans Mountain will provide a summary of these comments to BC Parks," the site states.

      However, if you insist on sending your input directly to B.C. Parks, it'll grudgingly accept your feedback. You just have to agree to a "privacy statement", acknowledging that your comments will be shared with Kinder Morgan. Only then is the hidden feedback form revealed.

      The pipeline won't just affect the aforementioned four parks and protected areas. B.C. Parks states that "Trans Mountain also intends to apply for a resource use permit (RUP) to construct the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion through Coquihalla Summit Recreation Area". 

      Kinder Morgan says on its Trans Mountain site: "Following completion of Project construction, the lands removed from the parks through the boundary adjustment may be returned to park or protected area status with operations authorized under a park use permit."

      Sierra Club B.C., the Wilderness Committee, and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society's B.C. chapter are fighting the proposed parkland removals.

      “Along with repealing the Park Amendment Act, the Province’s protected area boundary adjustment policy needs to be fixed to ensure that our parks are protected from industrial development,” Gwen Barlee of the Wilderness Committee said this week in a news release. “We are calling on British Columbians to defend our parks system—and these four parks in particular—by saying ‘no’ to changing these park boundaries to suit Kinder Morgan’s pipeline aspirations.”

      You can read Kinder Morgan's park boundary adjustment application on its Trans Mountain site.

      Comments

      9 Comments

      Gee

      Sep 11, 2014 at 10:44am

      Well we can't really call them PARKS anymore. They are very low activity industrial reserves.

      Propipe

      Sep 11, 2014 at 2:12pm

      I think that a lot of consern is generated by people running around yelling "the sky is falling, the sky is falling" when it should be the opposite. These people need to take a trip along the Yellowhead and see the result of the construction activity through Jasper National Park. I challenge some to even try to point out where the pipeline is.

      John Merriman

      Sep 11, 2014 at 4:41pm

      Propipe
      An untouched natural environment can not be restored to its original condition after you have dug up a whole swath of it to put in a pipeline. Whether you can "point out where it is" is irrelevant. The people of Burnaby had no idea that Kinder Morgan's existing pipe ran through their yards -- until it burst and spewed stinking black guck all over them. We don't want that for our parks. Money can't replace them.

      Ophita

      Sep 11, 2014 at 8:40pm

      Propipe--You seemed to have missed the point that public parks are for the preservation of these lands for future generations. The provincial and national parks are part of our rapidly diminishing commonwealth. Opening up these ecosystems to Kinder Morgan threatens our children's inheritance. And shouldn't other forms of industry equally be granted access to these lands if we approve KM's application? Pipeline malfunctions and environmental damage are highly probable--the Mount Polley disaster underscores the limitations of private industry to clean up their environmental catastrophies. They are also not very good at predicting 'accidents'. Taxpayers have good reasons to avoid the risks of our parks being open for business for all and sundry. You on the other hand, with your condescending dismissal of our concerns suggest that that you are probably trolling for KM. Otherwise, you might have debated this issue with valid facts and relevant issues.

      Abidicating Responsibility

      Sep 12, 2014 at 6:53am

      BC Parks is not accepting reponsibility for what they are caretakers for. This is absolute BS. Kinder Morgan would be just as happy to put a pipeline through your home if they could. No social conscience whatsoever. The provincial government seems to be washing their hands of governing in a number of areas. Mt. Polley, education, contractual agreements, etc. The list just keeps getting longer!

      Propipe

      Sep 13, 2014 at 6:29pm

      OK, so you are successful at stopping the big bad evil oil company for constructing a safe and proven method of transporting oil. Just wait until the huge trains with the same oil in them rolling through your utopia.How are you going to stop that? Are you going to lay your thousands of "enviornmentalists" on the tracks and try to stop a train? After a few derailments then you will be begging for a pipeline.

      John Merriman

      Sep 14, 2014 at 4:02pm

      Propipe
      What you are offering is a spurious choice. What Kinder Morgan want to put more of through their pipes is not "oil",it is bitumen diluted with highly volatile, highly flammable and carcinogenic distillates. The best place for bitumen is where it is, in the ground. No trains. No dilbit pipelines.

      Propipe

      Sep 15, 2014 at 4:03am

      Regardless what the outcome of this whole situation, the bitumen will be moved through your city one way or another. Mark my words.

      John Merriman

      Sep 15, 2014 at 5:16pm

      Propipe
      Many of us still have hope that you are wrong about that. After the National Energy Rubber-Stamp Board have finished their sham hearing process, Trans Mountain Pipeline still has to go to the cabinet (Harper) for confirmation. If he can be convinced that he has more to lose over this issue than to gain, it can be stopped.