The Chilliwack chapter marches on World Water Day.
The Council of Canadians Chilliwack chapter has been organizing against the proposed Aevitas Inc. hazardous waste recycling site since the chapter was founded earlier this year. The hazardous waste facility would have been situated less than 200 metres from the Fraser River and on the floodplain of the largest river system in British Columbia.
Global News now reports, “An Ontario company has pulled out of its plan to build a hazardous waste facility in Chilliwack.” In a statement, the company said, “Our intent was to build a recycling facility that could handle and manage drummed hazardous waste, transformer oil and fluorescent lamps from B.C. Unfortunately the multiple hurdles have accumulated to a never ending uphill battle.” The Chilliwack Times adds, “The proposed plant [was] opposed by a coalition of citizens, recreational fishing organizations and more than 30 environmental groups…” In a parting shot, the company said that those who supported their hazardous waste recycling plan “are the true environmental activists”.
The plan was for the facility to handle on a monthly basis 350,000 litres of transformer oil, 5,000 litres of oil with PCBs, 50 tons of transformers containing PCBs, and 500,000 lamps (CFL bulbs) containing mercury. The Vancouver Observer had highlighted the danger of the facility’s proximity to the river by noting, “One study of the Fraser predicts that [with climate change] what was a one-in-100 year flood cycle in the 20th century will become a one-in-four-year flood cycle by the end of the 21st century.”
This past World Water Day, the Chilliwack chapter and the WaterWealth Project organized a Fraser River Rally and Nature Walk at the site for this proposed project.
Congratulations to the Sto:lo Tribal Council, the WaterWealth Project, the Outdoor Recreation Council of B.C., the B.C. Federation of Drift Fishers, the Watershed Watch Salmon Society and all other groups and individuals who contributed to this win. The Chilliwack chapter was formed on February 19 and we send a special congratulations to them on their first major win.
Further reading
Chilliwack chapter to protest proposed hazardous waste site on World Water Day (March 2015 blog)
Photo: Chapter activist Suzy Coulter speaks against the proposed Aevitas hazardous waste facility.
