My Social Conscience made public

After a year of waiting for my time slot - I went in front of the National Energy Board today and imparted my views on why they should recommend that there should be no "Enbridge Northern Gateway Project."  I have thought long and hard on what I was going to tell them and then it came to me, what would I personally lose if this project was given a go ahead - I personally wouldn't lose much except for the "safety factor" in continued cruising mid Coast. But, a big "But" - my next two generations would never have the opportunity to see all that I have seen.  A cut an paste version of my speech is below here.  I am but one small voice, but together with all the other voices, perhaps, it will all make a difference.

“Ode to Mr. Keaton”

Good afternoon - My name is Betty Davison, first generation Canadian since 1963.  I am a mother, grandmother, wife, daughter, aunt, sister, daughter-in-law and cousin to many.  In 1963 my parents chose Canada to emigrate from Europe for a better quality of life for their family, they packed up their growing family of 5 and moved to Vancouver. My parents had chosen wisely!

We have been fortunate in that our parents had made sure that we were exposed to “Beautiful Super Natural” throughout our upbringing.  We have travelled areas of this beautiful province - from West Coast Vancouver Island to Prince Rupert to the Kootenays.  We left no map unwrinkled in our quest to visit all corners of BC to see what these areas were all about and what they had to offer. Summer after Summer, with Five children, two adults, the family dog and a friend or two packed in a station wagon piled high with tents, sleeping bags,  and coolers – our family traversed the province. This most basic North American rite has now been passed down to us from our parents albeit with a marine twist. For the past 38 years, my husband and son have enjoyed travelling the BC Coast via pleasure boat and camping.  We have spent the last 10-15 years of our “boating” life travelling extensively throughout the inside passage also known as the Northern Marine Highway, with the same curiosity about what was around that next corner that our parents instilled in us.  We have lived with the motto – “Take nothing but photographs, and leave nothing but footprints.”

To date, with my own family in our boat, we have logged over 3000 hours on the sea or approximately 30,000 miles including 10-15 years traversing the inside passage.  We have spent much time in places such as Bella Bella, Hartley Bay, Kitimat, Klemtu and Prince Rupert, we have enjoyed every single minute of what we have seen and experienced.  We have made many new friends along our travels and have seen and experienced Nature in all of its splendor and glory, including nursing Grizzly bears, a chance encounter with a Kermode or Spirit Bear, and we have seen and heard the majestic coastal wolves, Breaching humpback whales, feeding groups of orca, pod of grey whales, sea lions, pilot whales, dolphins, and myriad of sea-birds including tufted puffins. We have been able to watch all forms of intricate sea life on our shores,we have seen native middens and clam gardens, we have seen jaw dropping gorgeous old growth forests and many more wonderful on our BC Coast.  What a blessed person I have been!  All of these wondrous sites and experiences have prompted me to come before you today to express a definitive “no” to the Enbridge project. 

Our son (who is now also owns his own boat) has recently blessed us with a grandson, who is now 3 months old, we affectionately call him Mr. Keaton. We would very much for Mr. Keaton to experience all that we have been lucky to experience.  It is his inherent right, as it is ours!  The mere thought of running into tankers on one of these narrow channels or a possible bitumen spill frightens the heck out of us, and it also tromps on my (our) right to the enjoyment of life in Coastal British Columbia.

We have 37 years of experience on the water more specifically the ocean. We are prudent, knowledgeable boaters and have come to know and respect both the weather and ocean on our Coast and more specifically on the inside passage. Our travels have taken us to Prince Rupert many times, Kitimat and the Gardener Canal, Banks Island, Aristabel and many a trip circumnavigating of Princess Royale Island ( in search of the Kermode Bear.)  These are some of the same waterways that the supertankers will have to traverse if the Enbridge project goes ahead. These waterways can be both beautiful and treacherous at the same time dependent on weather, even for small boats like ours (a mere 20 ton). What will they be like for a 140,000 ton super tankers?  We at least have the luxury of dropping anchor in a protected bay and waiting out weather, not so for the tankers.

What will the conditions be like in the waterways such as Wright Sound, Whale or Douglas channel in “storm force winds” (48-63 knot winds) coupled with opposing tides (tide changes occur four times a day) and with Prince Rupert having tide swings of 20-25 feet in the summer the rush of water in and out of these narrow channels is great in the summer. Even with using two tugs to guide these behemouth tankers out to open waters it will a challenge to all concerned. The channels leaving Kitimat or Prince Rupert hold uncharted rocks, shallow areas, wind action called “outflow” winds (headland winds channeled out through these narrow inlets) All of this occurs on the proposed bituman tanker route.

As of late, we have also come to worry about Tsunami’s, as the seismic activity in our area have become increasingly active, wouldn’t a Tsunami play havoc on the proposed bitumen tanker traffic in any of the proposed traffic channels but also the head of Douglas Channel and any shore activity such as pipelines/holding tanks for the bituman etc.  We all watched with horror what happened with the Japanese Tsunami 2 years ago.   Seismologists keep hammering home to the BC public that the “Big One” is coming.  Most people think of the havoc caused by a large earthquakes as  large land based disasters, Tsunamis can cause just as much havoc on marine areas, traffic and foreshore based structures (just view our coastal beaches in the upcoming couples of years for the Japanese marine flotsam and jetsom due in from their Tsunami).  Natural events such as strong winds, strong currents, storms, fog and tsunamis are but a few natural marine obstacles that marine traffic must be wary of. Recently (within the last 2 months) the news of two container ship accidents  involving ships in the Prince Rupert area have become public, one of the larger container ships had a grounding on a sandbar due to avoidance of a fishing vessel.  What are the consequence of such a grounding if it were a 140 k ton vessel fully loaded with bitumen? If any one of these things I have just mentioned were to occur to the proposed Enbridge Tankers and shore based structures, the results could be catastrophic to our coastline and the lives of people in and around the inside passage.

I have much empathy for the indigenous Population on our coast as I too do not want a pipeline in my backyard or a super tanker going by my house every day, or having to live with the fear of potential contamination of my food and water source and my way of life disrupted or destroyed due to situations beyond my control.  On a more selfish and minute basis, I have empathy for my next two generations, my son and my grandson, on all that will be lost to them in this most beautiful part of British Columbia should the Enbridge project be allowed to proceed. The imminent threat of disaster and the increased traffic by the “Super Tankers” will disrupt not only the ecological life on our coast but the people that live, work or visit the area.  Will my offspring and their offspring be able to see nursing grizzly bears on the shore, or the elusive Kermode Bear on Princess Royal Island feeding on a shoreline or watch whales bubble feeding in Mackay reach, or watch the ocean shine silver with a boiling herring ball? 

Current marine traffic, such as work boats (Crabbers/Fish Boats/Prawning Vessels/Dive vessels for scallops/geoducks etc), employees and suppliers of fish farms all use the inside passage year round to earn their living off of the sea.  Mid Coast tourism brings Cruise Ships and cruising boaters such as ourselves to the inside passage from May to October.  Tanker Traffic from the LPG plant in Kitimat will already be traversing our waters by the time tankers carrying bitumen from Enbridge would start plying these same waters.  The sheer increased amount of traffic in these narrow inlets by “super” tankers are of great concern to those of us that have rights on these same waterways.  Stopping distances for the proposed tankers in some of the smaller channels and waterways will be a challenge – even at slow speeds, it could take up to a mile for these super tankers to stop.  I liken a chance encounter on the sea on our size boat with a super tanker to an 18 wheel Semi truck passing a bicycle on the highway – The truck probably would not hit the bicycle but the consequence to the cyclist could be very unpleasant.

You have heard from many qualified biologists and other scientists on the effects of tanker traffic on marine life such as whales, dolphins, seabirds on the inside passage, but what of the shore effects.  The effects of Tanker “wake” (propeller wash given off by large boats/Tugs causing large waves) on the inside passage and the erosion it causes due to the large waves, outside of normal tide action,  will also affect the coastal wildlife, like that  of the bear and other animals who feed in the tidal zones and shores of our coast?  Erosion is the effect that will be noticeable over time, a bitumen spill would have immediate devastating effects on our whole coastal area!  If the tugs and Tanker are travelling at any speed, erosion will be the furthest thing from my mind, as our boat gets tossed and tipped and perhaps thrown in areas we do not wish to visit. (like the shore or other marine hazards)

In closing, my rights and the rights of those that cannot speak, are being trampled by the imminent threat of the Enbridge proposal.  Please add my resounding “no” to those opposed to the Enbridge pipeline and proposed tanker shipping of Bitumen through our coast, for my family, for my grandson Mr. Keaton and for the bent ear Kermode Bear I have come to see. So that they may continue to have the quality of life and enjoyment on the inside passage that we have come to know.

Respectfully submitted!