City of Powell River Mayor Dave Formosa had some meeting time with federal Minister of Transportation Lisa Raitt, and provided his thoughts about BC Ferries’ efficiency plus movement of coal.
Prior to the Raitt meeting, arranged by John Weston, MP, West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country, Formosa said he was under the impression that the discussion would be about pipelines. “That’s what we didn’t talk about,” Formosa said.
The conversation, instead, was in three parts: liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Howe Sound; coal transportation, “which involves us;” and BC Ferries, which was another topic of interest for Formosa.
“I was able to follow up with the minister in a good setting,” Formosa said. “I got a good response from her on one of my pet peeves, which is BC Ferries.
“The manning requirements from Transport Canada for safety is exactly the same from Powell River to Texada as they are from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo,” Formosa said.
When there’s a long stretch, Formosa understands the staffing requirements. However, when there is a very short inside waters stretch, not as many staff are required, Formosa contends.
He said he understands collective agreements and other such factors, but “we are asking her to look at the regulations and come up with something more equitable.”
Formosa had previously spoken to Raitt regarding the safety staffing issue during a conference call.
“She remembered the meeting,” Formosa said. “She told me she’d check it out.”
Formosa said he also had met with the provincial minister of transportation and infrastructure and mentioned the issue. Formosa is hoping both ministers discuss the issue when they meet.
“If we get those things under control it could be a big savings,” Formosa said.
He also spoke on the coal issue. This involves thermal coal being shipped from the US by rail, transferred onto barge at Fraser Surrey Docks terminal and moved up the Salish Sea to Texada where it would be stored until transferred to deep-sea freighters for export to Asia. Texada Island has been storing coal for 50 years, he said. Formosa has visited the storage site, part of Lafarge Canada Inc.’s Texada Quarry, and said the site is expanding holding ponds and installing wind sensors to detect airborne particulate. He met with the workers and management, together with Nicholas Simons, MLA, Powell River-Sunshine Coast.
Formosa’s message to the minister was that the island could use the 15 jobs. The footprint is there and coal is already being stored at the location, he said.
“All they need to do is take down some old machinery and conveyors and they can add another shift,” he explained. “Also, a big piece is that the barges come empty to Texada, load up with gravel and go back full. This way they’d come full with the coal and go back with the gravel.”
The coal is going to be moved anyway, Formosa said, so Texada can be the beneficiary.
