Monday May 12th at 7pm
Delta Municipal Hall (take #601 bus from Burrard Skytrain Stn)
Who would have thought this East Van gal would be spending so much time in Delta and Surrey? Well let me tell you, all that time on the SkyTrain is paying off. Bridgeview, Bolivar Heights, Sunbury, South Delta -- this is where the real Gateway battle lies now. And our compadres south of the Fraser are fighting like demons.
At the "Spirit of Delta" rally this Saturday, hundreds lined up in the pouring rain to sign anti-Gateway petitions...OVER 1500 PEOPLE SIGNED THE PETITION! And tomorrow...Monday...Delta council will consider staff recommendations to extend the environmental review process and DELAY THE DELTA PORT EXPANSION BY 5 YEARS.
The South Perimeter Road and Port Expansion threaten to destroy these small communities, and all that lies in their toxic path -- the farmland, the salmon streams, First Nations archeological sites, and Burns Bog -- the precious wild ecosystem and massive carbon sink known as the "lungs of the lower mainland."
BUT the good news is...the SFPR is the weak link in the Gateway megaproject, and it is looking shakier day by day. Bring it down and we sever the dragon's neck. The Port expansion will be impossible, and the Port Mann Bridge twinning pointless, without this connecting link. And Surrey and Delta are rising up now!
Five years from now, our world will be a very different place. Gas prices will have doubled. Environmental awareness will be off the charts. Stall this monster, and we can win.
Our neighbours need our support NOW, to slay the many-headed dragon called Gateway.
Come out to Delta Municipal Hall tomorrow, jam the hall, bring a sign. Media will be there! Support Delta tell Delta Council to stop the SFPR and Gateway!
The meeting starts at 7pm (the important items are close to the end of the agenda so folks could show up closer to 7:45 or 8pm if they want to get out there on their own).
A group of us will be leaving on the #601 bus from in front of Burrard Skytrain in Vancouver at 5:45 to go out to the meeting. The bus takes 50 min. and stops in front of the Municipal Hall. We will be meeting up with friends from the Burns Bog Conservation Society and other concerned citizens.
Monday May 12th at 7pm
Delta Municipal Hall
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Message from Ben West of WCWC:
WE CAN STOP GATEWAY -- the South Fraser Perimeter Road is the key.
Delta municipal council will be discussing both Delta Port expansion and the South Fraser Perimeter Road at the council meeting this Monday! Council staff have prepared reports regarding the environmental impact of the port expansion and the environmental assessment being done before the South Fraser Perimeter road can be built.
The building of Terminal Two at Delta Port would have massive environmental implications including impact on whale migratory routes, the largest bird estuary in the region and drastic increases in pollution and green house gas emissions. The Council report recommendations suggest that port expansion be delayed for five years to study the impact of the smaller scale expansion that has already taken place.
The South Fraser Perimeter Road if built will have very serious impacts on Burns Bog, the "lungs of the lower mainland" and the largest carbon sink in the region. The Burns Bog Conservation Society has come out against the building of this major highway designed to serve increased truck traffic generated from the expansion of delta port. The Gateway programs own studies show this highway could lead to increased cancer rates and other illnesses in the region. The council report suggests that council staff be involved in the environmental review process. Lets make sure they know we want them to raise serious concerns at these meetings!
Council will be discussing the reports from staff and then making decision based on their recommendations. We need to be there to make sure they know folks in Delta and throughout the lower mainland are concerned about these decisions.
Gateway is far from a done deal ... its a dumb deal and here is a chance from us to do something about it!
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Ben West | Healthy Communities Campaigner
Wilderness Committee | Canada's largest membership-based wilderness preservation organization
w: 604-683-8220 | c: 604-710-5340 | www.wildernesscommittee.org