Nathan Cullen expands on LNG discussion points

With NDP MP Nathan Cullen preparing to relaunch his "Let's Talk LNG" Discussion session in the Northwest,  the MP for Skeena-Bulkley Valley has delivered to his constituents some more material to review on the theme.

"The rise of LNG in the Northwest is an opportunity to broaden the conversation, and to remind governments and industry of what we all want: a  smart approach to resource development. One that respects people as citizens, not as some inconvenience who just happen to "be in the way". -- NDP MP Nathan Cullen, from his "Getting things right LNG household mailer

In a household mailer arriving in Northwest mailboxes this week, Mr. Cullen has provided two pages of talking points on the theme of "Getting Things Right when it comes to LNG", outlining the NDP vision on energy production in Canada.

Included in that vision statement:

Sustainability: to make sure that polluters pay for the pollution they create instead of leaving those costs to the next generation and the public at large.

Partnership: communities and First Nations should all benefit from resource development and the value-added jobs they bring us here in Canada.

And, most importantly long term prosperity: the time to invest in modern, clean energy energy is now. This keeps Canada on the cutting edge of energy development.

Towards the discussion on regional development, Mr. Cullen reviews his commitment to making sure communities are consulted and voices are heard.  Adding that, any development projects need to have the social licence from the people who live there.

As we outlined on the blog back in the fall, Mr. Cullen first introduced that concept of the Social Licence in a previous household mailer, you can review the point by point on that proposal here.

The MP resumes his Let's Talk LNG discussion tour in February, with a pair of make up dates from the first round of the fall.  Mr. Cullen takes the tour to Smithers on February 19th and Prince Rupert on February 20th. Previously scheduled sessions in the fall had to be re-scheduled owing to conflicting schedules of the participants.

More on what his Let's Talk LNG project is all about can be found on the MP's website.

For those that have not received the mailer this week, or perhaps somehow put to the recycling pile, a  version of the latest talking points can be reviewed from the items below.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review

BCTF finds success in the courts; but BC Government considering appeal

For the second time in recent years, the Supreme Court of British Columbia has ruled that the Provincial Government has taken a wrong turn in the seemingly never ending labour disputes between the Province of British Columbia and the BCTF.

The most recent decision came by way of Madam Justice Susan Griffin, who outlined her judgment in a lengthy document released on Monday morning.

Those looking for some in depth reading of the Supreme Court decision can review all of the 683 passages, plus Appendix from the Court Register of the BC Supreme Court. (see here)

It makes for a second edition of the judgment issued in 2011, which stated that the constitutional rights of BC's teachers had been violated.  Act II if you will, came about from a 12 month period that

the Province had been provided for to take appropriate measures.

The Coles Notes version of Madam Griffin's deliberations of Monday come by way of reporters, columnists, broadcasters and editorial writers of the province.

The majority of whom appear to be in consensus, that the legal rebuke should give Premier Christie Clark cause to consider a new approach,  when it comes to relations between her government and the provinces' educational sector.

In a stream of columns, reports and editorials, the background of the disputes, which date back as far as 2002 and in particular  of the events of June of 2012 and the court case that followed. Provide for a wide ranging review of recent labour history between the two sides.

With the main thrust of the day's documentation being that the Government has been delivered a message it should heed and address.

Victoria Times Colonist-- Provoking strike was shameful
Victoria Times Colonist-- Fallout from BCTF ruling is staggering
Victoria Times Colonist-- Government conned parents and kids
Victoria Times Colonist-- B. C. Teachers' Federation wins sweeping court victory
Victoria News-- Court rejects B. C. class size law again; Province to pay teachers $2 million
Vancouver Province-- Court loss to BCTF could cost taxpayers plenty
Vancouver Sun-- On labour deals, Victoria giveth and the court taketh away
Vancouver Sun-- Court orders B. C. to restore class sizes and pay $2 million in damages to teachers
The Tyee-- Slammed by court on teacher dealings, Libs can't say they weren't warned
The Tyee-- BC Court rules in favour of teachers' union on Bill 22
24 Hours-- B. C. Teachers awarded $2 million in Bill 22 fight
CBC-- B. C. Teachers' Federation wins $2 M in damages from province
Global BC-- BCTF scores major victory on class size and composition
Global BC-- BCTF wins class size battle with provincial government

For the Government however, it appears that the legal decision isn't so much as judgment, but an indication that they need to make their case more appealing, with the prospect of a legal appeal apparently something that the Provincial Government is giving consideration to.

Education Minister Peter Fassbender outlined the government's disappointment in the decision, through a media availability session on Monday afternoon (listen here)

Premier Clark also seems to be expressing the theme that as far as  the Government is concerned, the final chapter on this topic has yet to be delivered.

Vancouver Sun-- B. C. will likely appeal teachers ruling that fined province $2 million: Christy Clark
CBC-- School boards warn restoring class sizes will be expensive

The developments of Monday made for much in the way of conversation topics on the major radio stations of the province.

Bill Good from CKNW featured the Court Decision as his opening editorial on Tuesday's talk show program, (CKNW Audio Vault 8:35 January 28)

As well on Tuesday, the CBC's on the Coast Program provides a helpful review of the developments, through an interview with former Vancouver Sun Education reporter Janet Steffenhagen. She now writes an education blog for the BC Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils.

Her thoughts on Monday's judgment can be found from the January 28th edition of the On the Coast Program her contribution arrives at the 5:12 PM mark of the program (listen here)

Ms. Steffenhagen also composed her own review of the Monday court judgment for the BCCPAC blog,  it can be found here.

While the Court Decision is clearly an indictment of the Government's handling of the education issue over the last What becomes of it all into the future remains to be seen.

The Province may choose to kick the political football down the road with it's potential appeal. While returning to the theme of late of fiscal responsibility when it comes to the education sector.

Contract negotiations currently underway may provide for more contentious issues to discuss and as always School District's across the province all await further instructions as to which direction the province wishes them to go.

One thing does seem certain however, relations between the Province and the BCTF probably still have a ways to go, before anyone will be able to use the word collaborative.

Cross posted from North Coast Review

Mr. Cullen puts his stamp on the debate to keep Postal Services at current levels

Parliament has returned to its duties for 2014, the first sessions of the new year taking place this week and Tuesday brought a controversial topic to the Floor of the House of Commons, as MP's began debate on issues surrounding the recently announced plans to bring to an end home postal delivery for Canadians.

We had some background on that announcement from our blog item of December, which outlined Canada Post's plans and the impact that it would have on Canadians, as well as the plans that union leaders were discussing to address the issue.

With the return of Parliament, the NDP have made the issue one of the first on their agenda for the new session. One of the leaders of the quest to keep home delivery a part of the Canada Post mandate has been Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen.

The NDP House Leader led off the NDP side of the discussion today, with a scathing indictment of the Canada Post plan and the Government's intention to see it through.




The discussion started on Tuesday afternoon, with the NDP vowing to keep the pressure on the government to reverse the Canada Post decision, some of the media items on the debate can be found below.

Janaury 28-- Lisa Raitt tells Opposition MPs to 'get with reality'
January 28-- MPs to debate Canada Post service cuts
January 28-- Future of door to door mail delivery debated in Ottawa
January 27-- Tom Mulcair to force vote on Canada Post end to home delivery
January 27-- Tom Mulcair promises full attack on Canada Post delivery cutbacks...

Cross posted from the North Coast Review

Deputy Premier to Host LNG Telephone Town Hall on Thursday

Rich Coleman, Deputy Premier and LNG Baron of British Columbia will be updating the province on the latest of information when it comes to LNG development in the province.

The Deputy Minister is hosting an LNG Telephone Town hall session on Thursday evening from 7:30 to 8:30, described by the BC Liberals as an exclusive update and opportunity to ask questions on the progress of the LNG file.

Those wishing to spend the hour on the phone to learn more about those developments, will have to register for the Thursday night session.

Following the registration process, information on how to access the conference call will be delivered to your email inbox, outlining how to access the Town hall session.

Considering that you have to register for the town hall session through the BC Liberal site. One might suspect that this is more of a BC Liberal function, as opposed to an information session through the Provincial government's Ministry of Natural Gas Development.

Still, for those inclined to participate, you can learn more about the Deputy Minister's plans from this item from the BC Liberals.

Cross Posted from North Coast Review

Provincial Government announces new Social Housing Property Manager for Prince Rupert

Some changes are coming to the direction of social housing in Prince Rupert, with the announcement of last week of a new approach to service delivery of housing requirements in the city.

On Friday, The British Columbia government announced that an agreement had been reached with a Victoria based First Nations Housing Society, with the government announcing that  M'akola Housing Society had been selected to operate a number of social housing locations in the city.

The M'akola Group of Societies was incorporated in February of 1984 in Victoria. Known at that time as the "Victoria Native Indian Housing Society", the Society changed their name to Makola Housing Society in April of 1988 and since that time have taken on an expanded role in social housing initiatives across the
province.

Previous to Friday's announcement of their expanded role on the North Coast, they were the operators of the Muks-Kum-Ol Housing Society in Prince Rupert and Terrace, operating 56 units in Prince Rupert.

Their expansion in Prince Rupert, comes after the Society was selected by the Provincial Government after responding to the July 2013 expression of interest request by the BC government.

With Friday's announcement, M'akola Housing Society will provide property management and administration services for 267 units of the following Prince Rupert public housing properties.

Mariposa Gardens on Hays Cove, Camarillo Lane and Seville Road (84 units)

Pineridge Terrace on Summit Avenue (37 units)

Harbour View Gardens on McKay Street and Kootenay Avenue (100 units)

Kootenay Place located on Kootenay Avenue  (10 units)

And Sunset Villa Apartments on 3rd Avenue West (36 units)

The M'akola Housing Society was selected based on their 30 years of experience in providing safe, affordable housing to Aboriginal residents throughout the province. The agreement will be administered through the Aboriginal Housing Management Association and will be based under the Aboriginal self-management model for social housing.

In 2013, the British Columbia government had invested more than 1.1 million dollars to provide subsidized housing and rent supplements for more than 440 households in Prince Rupert.

No financial details of the arrangement were released as part of the Friday announcement.

Details on Friday's announcement  can be found from this media release from the BC Government.

You can learn more about the M'akola Group of Societies from the wide range of information available on their website.

We have more items on housing in the Northwest available on our Housing and Real Estate archive page.

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

Northern BC Environmental Groups develop website for LNG conversation

With the ever changing dynamic of the proposed LNG developments for the North Coast, the flow of information seems to be coming at us at a rapid pace of late.

Whether it's the Major LNG proponents such as Petronas, BG Group, CNOOC/Nexen or the latest to the party Woodside, websites are popping up and offices are opening their doors in the quest to put forward the message of LNG development.

As well, the Provincial Government seems to provide for a daily update on some development or another revolving around the Premier's LNG strategy and the ambitious nature of how the Province sees that development evolving.

Now we can add one more portal to our bookmarks that of BC LNG INFO, a website that has been designed by a collective of environmental groups to deliver their thoughts on the rush to development and the impact that they believe the many projects that have been announced may have on the Northwest.

 “Residents are overwhelmed by the pace and scale of LNG development. The information we’re getting from industry and government is limited and hard to access. This website is a hub for people in the north who are grappling with what LNG means for us and our communities,”  Nadia Nowak, Northern LNG Facilitator, Northwest Institute

The groups that have come together to launch the website are the Northwest Institute and Skeena Wild Conservation Trust,  along with the Headwaters Initiative, the group describes their work as seeking to "provide information that will help northerners understand the influx of proposed gas expansion in BC and what the industry means for our communities"

From their portal their information flow will provide for thoughts on tracking, background on the routes of the projects and some reviews of the Premier's LNG figures and calculations.

They also provide for a news ticker of items on LNG development as well as a listing of events scheduled for the future.

Among their notes, a reminder of the upcoming Let's Talk LNG sessions with NDP MP Nathan Cullen, with a session planned for Smithers on February 19th and Prince Rupert hosting a session of the tour on February 20th.

One of their first in house items is a look at what impact development might have on communities of the Northwest. Particularly when it comes to an expected rapid pace of development and with it the social problems that could be part of such development, you can explore that theme further from the article titled Fort McTerrace?

The goal of the website as it's explained in the introduction, is to start a conversation on the theme of LNG development in the region.

Readers are invited to participate in that dialogue, by leaving a comment or submitting their own blog post to the project.

You can learn more about their BCLNG INFO project from their website.

For more on the topic of LNG Development the blog features a comprehensive review of developments both on the North Coast and in the Kitimat region, you can review our items from our archive pages.

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

City of Prince Rupert to launch Alternative Approval Process for Boundary Expansion plan

There was no discussion on the process at the most recent public session of City Council.

But a short notice on the City's website, advises Rupertites that if they have any objections to the city's proposed Boundary expansion plan, they will need to make use of the Alternate Approval process to express them.

The Boundary Expansion project which was first outlined in March of 2013, was once a wide ranging proposal that looked in many directions for potential expansion of the city's boundaries.

Much of that proposed plan (see here) was put on the back burner, as the neighbours weighed in with concerns over the expansionist eye that the City was casting.

There is however, one portion of the expansion plan that has continued forward, that to bring lands that contain the city's watershed under the control of the city and within its boundaries.

For this round of the Boundary Expansion process, the City is turning once again to the controversial Alternative Approval Process, posting details of the proposal to the City website this week.

The process is designed to move forward an initiative, which if successful would do so without the requirement of having to take it to a referendum process.

Something the City of Prince Rupert seems to find useful, as this would be the second time in three months that the City has used the process to move forward a proposed initiative.

From the website this description of the process outlines the key aspects of the one month countdown for the Boundary Expansion proposal.

The municipality may proceed with the Boundary Extension request unless at least ten percent of municipal electors indicate that a referendum must be held by submitting a signed Elector Response Form to Prince Rupert City Hall no later than 4:30 p. m.  on February 24, 2014.  Elector Response forms must be in the form established by the City of Prince Rupert, and only those persons who qualify as electors of the municipality are entitled to sign Elector Response forms.

The elector response forms are available from City Hall at 424 3rd Avenue West, between 9:30 AM and 4:30 PM Monday through Friday.

The Boundary extension request will be deemed to have the approval of electors, should less than 10 percent of municipal electors submit an Elector Response Form.  The number of votes required to prevent council from moving forward with their Extension plans would be 903 votes.

At which point the city could consider taking the project to a referendum, or we imagine decide to set it aside for the moment.

The controversial process was last used by the City in regard to the Airport Loan approval, which at the time raised the ire of two of the City's councillors.

During the discussion on that approach, both Councillor Ashley and Councillor Thorkelson expressed their concerns over what they believed was a less than democratic method of seeking approval.

You can review some of their contributions to the theme from our archive pages here.

Beyond the brief notice on the city's website, the city also took out the first of what are to be two advertisements in the weekly newspaper, which at the moment seems to be the only format of discussion on the topic, all be it rather one sided and lacking for debate or review.

If the Airport Loan process is any indication, few voters will bother to take the time to head down to city hall to express an opinion and for the most part, we imagine there aren't many who have a problem with the city taking charge of its watershed lands.

However, considering their previous alarm over the use of the Alternative Approval Process on the Airport Loan issue, one wonders if before the February 24th deadline arrives, the city's councillors may wish to bring the topic up for discussion once again in public forum.

Providing some background for the public as to why the City believes this is the best process to move projects forward and more importantly, how the City decides which projects require this approach and how often the City plans to use the Alternative Approval Process.

Notice to Electors on Alternative Approval Process
Elector Response Form

You can learn more about past items of interest on City Hall developments from our Civic politics archives.

Council Session Reviews
Discussion points for Council

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

NDP send out an SOS on Ferry Cuts

The BC NDP is calling on those that use BC Ferries to help them send a message to the provincial government regarding the impact that upcoming cuts to service will have on their day to day lives.

They have launched the BC Ferries SOS project, which will have British Columbians send them a note outlining how they depend on the ferry service and how the cuts will affect them personally as well as how it will impact on their region economically.

A dialogue page has been set up by the opposition party, which provides for an online process to register concern over the Ferry cuts ahead. The NDP is offering British Columbians the opportunity to register their comments here.

North Coast NDP MLA Jennifer Rice relayed the call to action through her twitter feed this week.

More on the NDP initiative can be found from BCNDP caucus page dedicated to the project,

BC Ferries announced a wide range of ferry service cutbacks in November with changes set to affect both the Haida Gwaii-Prince Rupert run and the trip from Prince Rupert to Port Hardy, you can learn more about those plans here.

We have more items of note on BC Ferries on our Transportation Archive page

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

Deadline for Election Expense Revew is coming up

The Province of British Columbia is at the midway mark of their review of Local Government Elections Expense Reform, with the second phase of the review regarding Expense limits nearing its end and with it, the opportunity for the public to provide commentary on the various proposals and talking points of the issue.

The proposal for expense limits for election participants was one of the recommendations made by the Local Government Elections Task Force, which began its work in 2010 with a number of recommendations to modernize and reform local government finance rules.

Consultation on a white paper on the theme was completed in October with a Discussion paper on that theme was released for review in November.

It provides much in the way of background on the topic and the history of Task Force Recommendations.

You can review that document here.

Some of the key points that have come out of the Task Force discussion phase include:

The Province would set the expense limits

Candidates and third party advertisers would be subject to expense limits

Expense limits would be sensitive to population size

Expense limits would also apply in Board of Education elections

Elections BC would enforce the limits as apart of its role in enforcing campaign finance rules

The Provincial Government is inviting feedback on the Discussion paper, accepting comments until January 31st.

There are three ways to provide your comments to the Reform process

By way of email at:  localgovelectionreform@gov.bc.ca

Or through the mail at:

Local Government Elections Reform
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development
PO Box 9847
STN Prov Govt
Victoria BC V8W 9T2

The topic of the electoral reform prospects is one that caught the interest of Councillor Joy Thorkelson, she made mention of the looming deadline at the January 6th session of City Council, urging both the city's council and residents to learn more about the topic and to offer their comments on the proposals.

The topic also came up for discussion at the most recent School District 52 session.

Any legislative amendments that are recommended by stakeholders and approved by the Legislature will come into effect for local elections after 2014.

The full review of the process, featuring much of the background information on it can be found from the website dedicated to the theme, which you can find here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review

Federal Government lifts freeze on Salmon Farming

In what could prove to be a very controversial decision on the West Coast, the Federal Government has  lifted the freeze on Fish Farm applications and already has received 11 applications to expand or introduce new salmon farming operations on the West Coast.

The decision which reportedly was made back in October of 2013, has never been publicly announced, a process which has raised the alarm for opponents of the Fish Farming industry who have issues not only on the impact of a revival of fish farming applications, but over the lack of transparency of the Federal Government's actions.

On the theme of transparency, opponents to the program certainly could point to the Government's own information flow as lacking in details.

A search of the Fisheries and Oceans website lists no announcement on the lifting of the moratorium or much on aquaculture itself in either this months listings or those of 2013.

The lifting of the moratorium on Fish Farming would also seem to be in conflict with the findings of the Cohen Commission Report.

As we outlined in our blog item of November 2012 that report outlined concerns over ocean net fish farms and the impact that they could have on wild stocks, with particular attention to the prospect of disease and sea lice.

Justice Cohen's commission heard much in the way of testimony regarding the discussion between Wild and Farmed Salmon in British Columbia, including participation from those on the North Coast when the Commission appeared in Prince Rupert in September of 2010.

You can review the full Cohen Commission Report from its archive.

Environmentalists have long been in opposition to the expansion of the Fish Farming Industry up and down the West Coast of Canada.

Much of their work has focused on their concerns that the industry offers to wild stocks and come through the work of a number of organizations and individuals, a sample of which can be found below.

T Buck Suzuki Foundation -- Salmon Farming: A grave concern, a great hope
Alexandra Morton -- Prime Minister of Canada opens door to more salmon farms in BC

On the North Coast, The Friends of Wild Salmon have hosted a long running campaign against the prospect of Open net salmon farms in the region.

The concerns of those in opposition to the various proposals for increased aquaculture, pits them against supporters of a growing industry on the West coast.

Aquaculture volumes have risen in recent years in British Columbia, an evolution of a business that is taking place at the same time as those that rely on the Wild stocks of coastal British Columbia have seen a string of lean years in over the last decade or so.

A 2012 report from the BC Chamber of Commerce outlines that that Aquaculture industry in the province generated 800 million dollars in economic output in BC, with salmon farming making up 94 percent of the aquaculture industry.

The BC Salmon Farmers Association provides their side of the Aquaculture story through a variety of articles and interviews posted to their website.

The Society for Positive Aquaculture Awareness also makes their case for the industry, through a range of items posted to their website.

The lifting of the moratorium and the discussion over the less than transparent nature of the decision, will more than likely spur on much more debate in the months to come over the future of the industry in British Columbia.

Some items of interest over the recent developments can be found below.

January 16-- Ottawa opens door to fish farm expansion, and applications flood in
January 15-- B. C. Fish farmers see opportunity as DFO lifts licence freeze

You can review more background on the topic of the Fishing industry from our archive page.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review

Nathan Cullen find Bitumen Study release "highly suspect"

We imagine, that if Nathan Cullen, the NDP MP for Skeena-Bulkley Valley was the type to break out in song, his musical number of choice regarding the release date of a recent Federal study into bitumen and its impact on the ocean environment would be, "That don't impress me much".

Cullen weighed in with some thoughts upon the release of a Federal Government Study on the behaviour of diluted bitumen, suggesting that at least two of the Panel's conditions may now already be outdated.

In particular he calls into question the required amount of "spill insurance" that the Panel has recommended, suggesting that the suggested requirement of 950 million dollars in insurance monies is inadequate. Pointing towards an Enbridge incident in Kalamazoo, Michigan, which at last count had surpassed the $1 billion dollar mark and continues on with remediation work three years after the incident

Photo from Federal Report Nov  2013

He also had harsh words for the nature of the bitumen study recently released, calling the timing of its release suspect, after the JRP panel gave its conditional approval to the project, as something to be highly
suspect of.

The  85 page Report compiled by a trio of Federal Agencies was completed in November of 2013, but its contents were not released to the public until earlier this month, you can review its findings here.

The conclusions to the report can be found from pages 73 to 75.

The main focus and general takeaway from the report being that Diluted Bitumen, sinks in salt water when it is exposed to ocean waves and accumulating sediment.

But when that sediment is not part of its composite the bitumen floats, even after it is exposed to light and evaporation.

The study also casts doubts on the ability of dispersal chemicals to have much of an effect on the diluted bitumen. Which would seem to suggest that better methods of environmental clean up may be required for coastal waters of the province.

The review of the effect of Oil Weathering and Buoyancy in Marine Conditions can be found from pages 42 to 72

The authors of the study did recommend that further study needs to be conducted into aspects of the reaction of bitumen in the marine environment.

The focus of much of the discussion on bitumen of late has been the ability to clean up any potential spills that may take place off of coastal British Columbia, with the main theory being that any required clean up would be made much harder should the bitumen sink to the bottom of the ocean.

Mr. Cullen provided his talking points on the report and other Gateway panel observations through a  media release posted to his Skeena-Bulkley Valley riding website.

The Joint Review panel announced its approval of the Northern Gateway Project in December of 2013, however the panelists did outline 209 conditions to be met by proponents of the project, included in those conditions, the need for more research into the interaction of bitumen and the ocean environment (section 6.5 of the JRP report page 99).

Further background on the Bitumen study can be found below:

January 17-- Study could have altered Gateway report: scientist
January 16-- MP Slams timing of Bitumen Study Release
January 15-- Bitumen floats at sea, study finds
January 14-- Diluted bitumen sinks when mixed with sediments, federal report says
January 14-- Diluted Bitumen sinks, Federal report confirms

We have more items of interest on the Northern Gateway project on our archive page.

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

A Second Grassy Point LNG project announced

The Aussies are joining in on British Columbia's LNG party, with word that an agreement for a second proposal for the Grassy Point region has been reached between the Province of British Columbia and Woodside an Australian LNG firm.

"Woodside looks forward to working with the Government of British Columbia, the First Nations and the community as we assess the feasibility of an LNG development at Grassy Point," --- Peter Coleman, Woodside CEO and managing director.

The proposed natural gas export terminal would be located on the southern parcel of land near Grassy Point, and brings the Australian company into the growing group of energy companies in the region.

Woodside is the largest independent operator of oil and gas development in Australia, where it features an extensive network of LNG operations.

You can learn more about the Australian energy company from their website here.

Today's announcement is a result of the Request of Interest that the Province put out in February of 2013.

Woodside joins with the current proposals of three LNG export facilities around Prince Rupert, today's announcement is the second one directed towards the Grassy Point area.

In November of 2013, CNOOC/Nexen announced that they had reached terms with the Province to develop an LNG terminal project known as Aurora for the Grassy Point region.

The arrival of Woodside to the region, adds even more international flavour the the proposals of the North Coast. Along with the newest arrivals and the Chinese group from CNOOC; Malaysian Petronas and British Gas have also outlined their plans for development of LNG terminals for the region.

Details on today's announcement, which outline the terms and the payments involved can be found from the British Columbia Government website.

No further information on the timeline of the project, suppliers of the gas and other items of infrastructure were released at today's briefing.

You can access more information on all of the LNG developments planned for the North Coast from our archive page here.

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

Postal Cuts Protests take shape

The opposition to planned postal service cuts across Canada has begun to mobilize, led by the union that represents postal workers across the nation.

This week CUPW took its message to Prince George, with a protest rally in the Central Interior city on Wednesday.

An event that attracted a range of participants, from unionized postal workers and other labour groups, to other concerned citizens and groups.

For the most part, it was a collective that doesn't share the Canada Post vision of the future of the super mailbox and other planned changes to the nature of our mail system.

Rally rails against mail cuts
CUPW Targets MP Zimmer with Protest
Mail Protest at Zimmer's Office (video)
Rally calls for Continued Door to Door Mail Service

The Prince George protest was just one of a number of rallies planned for across the nation, running as part of an information campaign launched by CUPW. The campaign is designed to send a message to the Conservative Government that Canadians have concerns over the future of their mail service and the sweeping changes planned by Canada Post.

Part of that information process can be found from this item found on the CUPW website, which offers up a bit of un-intended irony to the debate, with CUPW suggesting an email campaign on the topic. The explosion of email usage of course being one of the reasons of declining reliance on the mail by Canadians.

Though, Canada Post does also suggest a massive letter writing campaign by Canadians through the mail, with letters directed to Members of Parliament, correspondences which can be deposited in your local mail box free of postage.

CUPW also recommends that Canadians print out a window sign that calls on the Government to Save Canada Post.

Beyond those steps, CUPW would also like Canadians to learn more about their campaign to stop the planned cutbacks.

An umbrella group has been organized to make the case for expanded Postal service in the nation as opposed to the Canada Post plans, the main thrust of which would appear to be to set up a Postal Banking system across Canada.

They make their case and provide some alternative solutions to the Canada Post business plan from their website called publicpostoffice.ca

You can review the wide range of changes planned by Canada Post from our item on the theme of December.

As part of the cross-Canada protests planned by CUPW, a demonstration is planned for January 26th on Parliament Hill, designed to coincide with the return to work of MP's in Ottawa.

No details of any local protest in Prince Rupert have been announced as of yet.

Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

City of Prince Rupert has three keys issues to discuss with the Province

At the end of Monday's City Council session, Mayor Jack Mussallem outlined three issues that the City is making plans to discuss with the Province of British Columbia.

Among the top three priorities for discussion as 2014 gets underway.

The need to move the city's watershed to be included within the municipal borders. It was a theme that was last explored in November of 2013.

The ongoing nature of site remediation at Watson Island, a long running discussion that would see the City seek out some form of arrangement with the province to continue on with the removal of chemicals from the industrial site.

The final topic for discussion with Provincial officials will be the recently announced cutbacks to the BC Ferry Service, with the City seeking to outline the impacts that those cuts will have on Prince Rupert and the North Coast. It was a topic that Council explored in December, expressing their concern over the direction that BC Ferries was taking in the North.

You can review the Mayors checklist from the City's Video Archive for January 6th, he outlines the items from the 37 to 38 minute mark.

 Cross Posted from the North Coast Review

Mr. Cullen's Tax Tips

Now that you've survived your holiday celebrations (and perhaps broken the first of a few of your New Year's resolutions) the call of a new year is upon us, with Tax Time just around the corner (please don't shoot the messenger).

To help residents of the Northwest better understand the requirements of the Federal Tax Return, the MP for Skeena-Bulkley Valley is taking to the road, ready to offer up some help for the 2013 Federal tax return.

Nathan Cullen has announced that he and a number of volunteers will be arriving in a number of local communities over the course of January, ready to assist constituents as they prepare the groundwork of their tax returns.

The first of the public sessions is planned for Prince Rupert's campus of Northwest Community college from 1 PM to 3 PM on Sunday, January 19th.

The Two hour session will help North Coast residents learn more about such things as the Working Income Tax Benefit, the Public Transit Tax Credit, or the Children's Arts Tax Credit, outlining what those and other benefits are all about and how taxpayers can apply for them.

The tour continues through the Northwest through until January 21st, you can find out more about the sessions and where they take place here.

Those with questions on the sessions can contact the MP's office at 1-888-622-0212

 Cross posted from the North Coast Review

Northern Routes spared BC Ferries increase in Fuel Surcharge

North Coast residents can find one sliver of good news from all of the media releases from BC Ferries of the last few months.

This time around, both the Northern Route to  and Port Hardy and th e Haida Gwaii route will be spared the 3.5 fare increase destined for all other BC Ferries routes to the south, set to be put in place to cover rising fuel costs.

Last week BC Ferries announced the need apply the surcharge to all routes except the Northern ones as the cost of fuel has dramatically risen over the last few months, in 2013 the cost of fuel for vessels of the fleet was 121 million, by comparison in 2004 the entire fleet spent but 50 million in fuel requirements.

With fuel prices not expected to decline in the near future, BC Ferries outlined that it had no other alternative at this time to cover off the cost of keeping the vessels on the water. To address the issue into the future, the Ferry Corporation advised that they are giving some consideration to have any new vessels planned to be built for the fleet to have LNG capability.

The fuel surcharge comes on the heels of a string of service cuts announced by the Ferry Corporation last November.

The fuel surcharge takes effect on January 17th.

You can review the full scope of the fuel surcharge from this media release from BC Ferries.

Media reviews of what will no doubt be an unpopular announcement can be found below.

CTV-- Amid cuts, BC Ferries adds 3.5 per cent fuel surcharge
CBC-- BC Ferries hiking fares 3.5% to cover rising fuel costs
Global TV-- Ferries getting even more expensive: New fuel surcharge effective Jan 17
24 Hours Vancouver-- BC Ferries adds new surcharge
Victoria Times Colonist-- B. C. Ferries adding 3.5% fuel surcharge to fares

Cross posted from the North Coast Review