[quote]Jack Payne, owner of the Pacific Inn, Inn on the Harbour and Totem Lodge, confirmed speculation that a number of Prince Rupert hotels have been asked to submit proposals and said he has offered a portion of his rooms.
Payne said a contractor for Canpotex, K2 Joint Venture, is looking for more than 200 rooms in a combination of Prince Rupert hotels that would begin in August[/quote]
Considering this project has not had the official “Yes” from Canpotex (despite everything else being in place at this point)…that is quite telling that this project is indeed going forward.
Pretty exciting for Prince Rupert and Area as the Canpotex Export Terminal is a HUGE project.
[quote]Jack Payne, owner of the Pacific Inn, Inn on the Harbour and Totem Lodge, confirmed speculation that a number of Prince Rupert hotels have been asked to submit proposals and said he has offered a portion of his rooms.
Payne said a contractor for Canpotex[/quote]
, K2 Joint Venture, is looking for more than 200 rooms in a combination of Prince Rupert hotels that would begin in August
Considering this project has not had the official “Yes” from Canpotex (despite everything else being in place at this point)…that is quite telling that this project is indeed going forward.
Pretty exciting for Prince Rupert and Area as the Canpotex Export Terminal is a HUGE project.[/quote]
Considering how huge the project will be it seems odd that Black Press has it buried in a story about hotels and on page 24 of the Classified section. There is a fuller discussion of the Canpotex story here: northcoastreview.blogspot.ca/201 … potex.html
The environmental impact statement says that the Canpotex terminal and the Ridley Island road, rail and utility corridor are “interdependent” such that only a single EIS is required. Obviously Canpotex requires the road and rail access for the terminal but “interdependent” should also mean that the road and rail project requires Canpotex to build a terminal. Canpotex most likely has a contractual obligation to the Port Authority to build the terminal now that the road, rail, utility corridor is being constructed. Canpotex is probably in the position that there would be financial penalties for failing to build their terminal at this point. Why they haven’t made the announcement yet is perplexing. Perhaps final sign off from the potash mines that comprise Canpotex? Or are there financial advantages to getting all their major construction contracts in place before announcing the project go ahead?
You should not be perplexed. The Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Canpotex project was “weak” in some areas & the unasked & unanswered questions were deferred to the “Permitting Stage” the notice in the paper was timed with the submission of the application for the permit to “Dispose at Sea” (DAS) of the dredging’s needed for the ship berth. The issuing of this permit is not a done deal. There are serious concerns of the levels of contamination in the sediments for copper and arsenic, & most troubling, complex problems with the levels & testing (or lack of) for Dioxins and Furans, again part of our lasting legacy of the pulp mill, which seems to have been missed in the EA. The dioxins are tied up in organics in the near surface of the sediments and will re suspend & re enter the food chains of Skeena estuary, bio magnifying to, of particular concern salmon & humans. Dioxin is well-known for its ability to damage the immune system and interfere with hormonal systems & could have a catastrophic effect on out migrating salmon smolts & are linked to increased rates of childhood obesity & diabetes. Dioxin is “ubiquitous” which means it spreads out, so all of us living around Chatham Sound & the mouth of the Skeena already have a higher than average back ground level, & as hydrophobic (water-fearing) and lipophilic (fat-loving) dioxin bioaccumulates so readily, any local seafood in your diet will escalate your levels, & I wont get into the amount of dioxin down loading through breast feeding. Health Canada did not address dioxin risks in the EA but may now if asked to by Environment Canada (EC) now in the permitting stage. There will be an opportunity for comment after the EC approval of the application I urge every one to make them selves aware of this permitting process as it progresses it may be quite fast.
You may wish to contact at EC Paul,Tiffany [PYR] Tiffany.Paul@ec.gc.ca “Trainor,Kristie [PYR]” Kristie.Trainor@ec.gc.ca or Tyler Mcdougall Canpotex Capital Projects Manager @ 604-903-7140
I would be nice if the Port of Prince Rupert, being as green as it is, would come up with a " Contaminated Sediment Strategy" (other than let sleeping dogs lie) I understand the Ridley Is. LNG next door is possibly 1.5 million cubic meters of sediment