LNG draws island ire
Proponents of a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility and power plant faced a roomful of angry, scornful and skeptical Texada Island residents for the first public meeting about the $2 billion project. Audio1, Audio2, Audio3.
Laura Walz
Peak Editor
Powell River Peak
13-Sep-2007
WestPac LNG president Mark Butler ignored heckling, jeering and insults as he worked his way through a presentation about the plan for a combined LNG import terminal and natural gas-fired power generation facility at Kiddie Point, known locally as Coho Point, located at the north end of the island.
STICKHANDLING OPPOSITION: Mark Butler, WestPac LNG president,
handled heckling, jeering and scorn during a two-and-a-half hour
public meeting about a proposal to build a liquefied natural gas
terminal and power plant on the north end of Texada Island.
Click here for the Peak audio
Not one of the more than 120 people who packed the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 232 hall in Van Anda on Monday, September 10, spoke in favour of the proposal, that would generate more than 300 jobs during three years of construction and create about 80 full-time permanent positions when completed.
Facilities at the site include a marine jetty, onshore LNG storage tanks, a natural gas-fired power generation facility, an interconnection with the existing Terasen natural gas pipeline and a transmission line connecting to the existing Cheekeye-Dunsmuir line which supplies power to Vancouver Island.
If the project passes through a variety of government and other approvals, large tankers would transport LNG from Australia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, arriving about every 10 days.
The project is not a cookie-cutter project that's being dropped on Texada Island, Butler said. "There are no design steps. There are no site layouts. There is no selection of equipment and plant," he said. "This is a concept. It's a proposal. It's something that we think could work."
Some of the LNG the company brings in would be used to fire the power plant that would produce 600 megawatts and could generate up to 1,200 megawatts in the future. The rest of the LNG would go into the existing gas pipeline operated by Terasen Gas. The power from the plant would tap into the powerline operated by BC Transmission Corporation.
"Texada Island [has] the existing energy infrastructure that is underutilized and that we think can be used in a better way to meet needs in the province of British Columbia," Butler said.
The project, which could be up and running by 2013 at the earliest, would supply a "firm" power supply to help offset the deficit the province now faces and help it meet its energy-efficiency goals.
Chuck Childress, a Texada resident, who at one time was a Powell River Regional District director representing the island, said residents had organized a meeting for the following Sunday, September 16.
"One of things that we're doing at that meeting is we're going to discuss the people of Texada having a referendum on this issue," he said, drawing the loudest and most sustained applause of the night. "Are you willing to abide by the decision as given by the people of Texada in a secret ballot?"
Butler said the company would comply with the governmental process that has been established in Canada, "a democracy of a lot more people than just on Texada Island." He said his company would "listen to the outcome" of a referendum, but the process is governed by the laws of Canada.
Butler remained on his feet for the meeting, which lasted almost two and a half hours, answering questions and deflecting heckling, and at times, rude remarks. People had a wide range of concerns, including: safety risks associated with LNG; what would happen in the event of an earthquake; if the terminal and tankers could become targets of terrorist attacks; the impact the project would have on the environment and global warming; the route of the new transmission line; health concerns related to the magnetic field created by the transmission line; if the gas or power would be exported to the United States; and if the company and the government would listen to the voices of island residents.
Celesa Horvath, WestPac vice-president of corporate responsibility and regulatory affairs, has extensive experience working with companies in the environmental assessment process. She said that many projects are not approved because of public input or concerns around environmental impact. "I can't guarantee what the outcome of the process will be, just that we're going to be in a process and we want to encourage participation in it so that it is a meaningful process and brings out all the information that is required for the decision makers," she said. "Part of that is making sure that your voices are heard in that process."
In the end, a young man held up a sign that read, "Go Home WestPac."
Butler asked him to leave, pointing out this was WestPac's meeting, but people took exception to his request and left.
The community meeting is scheduled for 7 pm on Sunday, September 16 in the Gillies Bay community hall.
More information about WestPac and the project is available on the company's website, www.westpaclng.com.
Mark Butler, president of WestPac LNG, on the company's first public meeting held on Texada Island on Monday, September 10, 2007. Click here for the Peak audio
Mark Butler explains why Texada Island was chosen for this project. Click here for the Peak audio
Chuck Childress, long-time Texada Island resident and former director on the Powell River Regional District board, asks a question about the impact of the proposed LNG plant and power plant. Click here for the Peak audio
©The Powell River Peak 2007
Laura Walz
Peak Editor
Powell River Peak
13-Sep-2007
WestPac LNG president Mark Butler ignored heckling, jeering and insults as he worked his way through a presentation about the plan for a combined LNG import terminal and natural gas-fired power generation facility at Kiddie Point, known locally as Coho Point, located at the north end of the island.
STICKHANDLING OPPOSITION: Mark Butler, WestPac LNG president,
handled heckling, jeering and scorn during a two-and-a-half hour
public meeting about a proposal to build a liquefied natural gas
terminal and power plant on the north end of Texada Island.
Click here for the Peak audio
Not one of the more than 120 people who packed the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 232 hall in Van Anda on Monday, September 10, spoke in favour of the proposal, that would generate more than 300 jobs during three years of construction and create about 80 full-time permanent positions when completed.
Facilities at the site include a marine jetty, onshore LNG storage tanks, a natural gas-fired power generation facility, an interconnection with the existing Terasen natural gas pipeline and a transmission line connecting to the existing Cheekeye-Dunsmuir line which supplies power to Vancouver Island.
If the project passes through a variety of government and other approvals, large tankers would transport LNG from Australia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, arriving about every 10 days.
The project is not a cookie-cutter project that's being dropped on Texada Island, Butler said. "There are no design steps. There are no site layouts. There is no selection of equipment and plant," he said. "This is a concept. It's a proposal. It's something that we think could work."
Some of the LNG the company brings in would be used to fire the power plant that would produce 600 megawatts and could generate up to 1,200 megawatts in the future. The rest of the LNG would go into the existing gas pipeline operated by Terasen Gas. The power from the plant would tap into the powerline operated by BC Transmission Corporation.
"Texada Island [has] the existing energy infrastructure that is underutilized and that we think can be used in a better way to meet needs in the province of British Columbia," Butler said.
The project, which could be up and running by 2013 at the earliest, would supply a "firm" power supply to help offset the deficit the province now faces and help it meet its energy-efficiency goals.
Chuck Childress, a Texada resident, who at one time was a Powell River Regional District director representing the island, said residents had organized a meeting for the following Sunday, September 16.
"One of things that we're doing at that meeting is we're going to discuss the people of Texada having a referendum on this issue," he said, drawing the loudest and most sustained applause of the night. "Are you willing to abide by the decision as given by the people of Texada in a secret ballot?"
Butler said the company would comply with the governmental process that has been established in Canada, "a democracy of a lot more people than just on Texada Island." He said his company would "listen to the outcome" of a referendum, but the process is governed by the laws of Canada.
Butler remained on his feet for the meeting, which lasted almost two and a half hours, answering questions and deflecting heckling, and at times, rude remarks. People had a wide range of concerns, including: safety risks associated with LNG; what would happen in the event of an earthquake; if the terminal and tankers could become targets of terrorist attacks; the impact the project would have on the environment and global warming; the route of the new transmission line; health concerns related to the magnetic field created by the transmission line; if the gas or power would be exported to the United States; and if the company and the government would listen to the voices of island residents.
Celesa Horvath, WestPac vice-president of corporate responsibility and regulatory affairs, has extensive experience working with companies in the environmental assessment process. She said that many projects are not approved because of public input or concerns around environmental impact. "I can't guarantee what the outcome of the process will be, just that we're going to be in a process and we want to encourage participation in it so that it is a meaningful process and brings out all the information that is required for the decision makers," she said. "Part of that is making sure that your voices are heard in that process."
In the end, a young man held up a sign that read, "Go Home WestPac."
Butler asked him to leave, pointing out this was WestPac's meeting, but people took exception to his request and left.
The community meeting is scheduled for 7 pm on Sunday, September 16 in the Gillies Bay community hall.
More information about WestPac and the project is available on the company's website, www.westpaclng.com.
Mark Butler, president of WestPac LNG, on the company's first public meeting held on Texada Island on Monday, September 10, 2007. Click here for the Peak audio
Mark Butler explains why Texada Island was chosen for this project. Click here for the Peak audio
Chuck Childress, long-time Texada Island resident and former director on the Powell River Regional District board, asks a question about the impact of the proposed LNG plant and power plant. Click here for the Peak audio
©The Powell River Peak 2007
posted by Friend of Texada at
11:47 AM
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