Smithers Council is speaking its mind about the proposed LNG project on Lelu Island.
Council recently voted 6-1 to send a letter to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency about its “deep concern” over the site.
In the letter, the Town says the detrimental effects to other sectors and the Skeena river system outweigh the economic pro’s.
Councilor Phil Brienesse says Council isn’t anti-LNG but knows there are better spots.
“This location is about the worst location you could’ve possibly picked for this. Ideally, it would’ve been nice if the government would’ve identified those locations that are best for these sorts of projects and offered those up to companies as opposed to the other way around,” he says.
Council understands the potential for jobs and revenue that come with a massive LNG project but says the possibility of harming local industries is too great a risk.
“25 times more wild salmon spend their juvenile years there than any other area in the mouth so it was more about the location than it was about the particular industry.”
Local commercial fisheries and tourism rely heavily on the Skeena salmon. The project could also harm local food security and First Nations cultural values.