Despite the many placards bearing slogans protesting the marine outfall of the Bowser Sewer Services Project, the Regional District of Nanaimo board gave third reading to rezone two properties in Electoral Area H to permit development of a wastewater treatment facility.
Close to 30 residents from Area H, who were against using the ocean to discharge treated wastewater, showed up at the board’s regular meeting on Tuesday night, bearing signs and posters to make their united opposition known to all the board members. They were not allowed to speak but they were hoping to discourage some of the directors from endorsing Zoning Amendment Bylaw 500.420, which involves properties on Pitt Road and Shaughnessy Drive.
The RDN had security personnel present during the meeting.
Chair Bill Veenhof, who is also the director for Area H, turned control of the meeting to vice-chair Ian Thorpe as Veenhof gave his comments about the whole project prior to the board voting on the issue.
Veenhof said the sewer servicing for the Bowser Village Centre was developed to achieve the community’s vision of turning the region into a compact, complete community.
“Creating a service in the area is strictly regulated by the provincial local government act (LGA),” Veenhof said. “In setting up a service area, the LGA requires that those who will pay for the service are the only people who have a voice in whether or not that service goes forward.”
Veenhof said they took pains to ensure the process was done by the book. Owners of 99 properties, representing 107 parcels located in the village centre, were the only ones allowed to take part in the petition process. Sixty-seven owners voted in favour of the $10.7 million project.
“We have mandate from the people to establish sewer in Bowser. Ending this effort would ignore the democratic will of Bowser residents,” said Veenhof. It was a statement that had the gallery howling and booing in disagreement and were asked by Thorpe to protest in silence.
Veenhof said he was uncomfortable with the outfall and had asked staff to spend additional funds to investigate a land-based disposal solution.
“Staff had advised me several times that land-based disposal in the Bowser area is simply not possible,” said Veenhof. “We are left with an outfall.”
Veenhof said they are going to make sure that the Bowser sewer meets or exceeds provincial and federal standards.
Electoral Area F representative, Jack McLean, who attended the meeting for Director Julian Fell, opposed the rezoning of the two lots. He said he was concerned about the process. He pointed out 98.3 per cent of the people who participated in the public hearing opposed the zoning amendment while 1.7 per cent approved it.
“I can say that if this bylaw passes it’s not a democratic decision,” said McLean, who added it was borderline dictatorship as it does not adhere to the will of the people. Area G director Joe Stanhope also did not support the rezoning.
“There has to be a land base somewhere … a land-base solution to it,” said Stanhope, who is against the marine outfall.
Qualicum Beach Director and Mayor Teunis Westbroek said the last time this issue was debated, consultation with the First Nations was brought up, and Qualicum First Nation Chief Michael Recalma was present.
“I asked him [Recalma] are you OK with this and he said yes,” said Westbroek.
Area A director Alec McPherson and Director of Lantzville Bob Colclough shared the same views that the technology that exists today for treating wastewater is sound.
“One of the things that I am most interested in is how much support Georgia Strait Alliance, which is one of the best environmental organizations I have seen in a long time, supports secondary treatment,” said McPherson.
The board gave the zoning amendment third reading much to the disappointment of the Area H residents present at the meeting.
“I came here to see for myself how our director is going to vote, whether he listened,” said Dave Wiwchar of Deep Bay.
The next step of the process is to get the zoning amendment bylaw approved by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.