Squamish, a city caught between the tree and the bark of the rush for liquefied natural gas

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Construction of the Woodfibre LNG terminal is well and truly underway, but opponents still hope to slow down its completion or, at the very least, limit its impact on the Squamish community.

• Catherine Dib (View profile)Catherine Dib

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The first shovel of earth for the tunnel was made last August and a ferry with more than 600 rooms is waiting at the gates of Vancouver to take the road to Squamish to welcome the workers who will build the factory. All signs point to the realization of the Woodfibre LNG project, which has been in the works for more than ten years. However, the Municipality of Squamish and citizen groups still hope to limit the impacts of the massive project on their community.

Tracey Saxby, co-founder of the My Sea to Sky organization, has led the charge against the plant's establishment in the region since 2014. Monday morning, she returned from a demonstration to denounce the project.

They will extract gas in the north of the province, transport it here and export it, she deplores. We're creating a new fossil fuel industry at a time when we're facing a climate crisis.

His group, My Sea to Sky, has attempted to curb the proposed liquefied natural gas export through legal channels, with two cases currently underway to limit the project's effects on local flora and fauna. .

Tracey Saxby, co-founder of My Sea to Sky, has been campaigning for 10 years to preserve Howe Sound and block Woodfibre LNG.

In 2015, My Sea to Sky also started a petition calling for the project to be stopped, which accumulated more than 23,000 signatures. According to Tracey Saxby, the opposition against Woodfibre LNG is still there, 10 years after the first mobilizations.

Although the mobilization does not seem as significant as at the start of the project, such as during the demonstration of 300 people in November 2016, Tracey Saxby believes that the opposition manifests itself differently.

In the city center, residents share the activist's point of view. I think the world is going in a completely different direction right now and it's a little strange for us to choose LNG when we should be turning to renewable energies, says Kayla Mak, a music teacher from Squamish.

Alyssa Noël, for her part, worries about the effects of the labor camp. It’s alarming to send such a large group of new residents. There are issues associated with these camps, she notes, citing the risks these camps pose to the safety of Indigenous women, a concern raised by the Justice for Girls group.

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Reza Eftekhari, a Squamish resident, welcomes the arrival of the project. Construction is always good for the economy!, he exclaims.

Woodfibre LNG has already highlighted that its project will create more than 650 jobs during construction and more than a hundred over 25 years when the plant is in operation.

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Kayla Mak admits that she no longer follows the stages of carrying out the project step by step, but she considers that it is not in line with the current climate crisis situation.

Tracey Saxby believes the imposition of the project likely pushed Squamish residents to elect a municipal council critical of the latter in October 2022.

I would say that the level of social acceptability is low, she says, despite the fact that the project obtained the green light from the federal and provincial governments as well as the First Nations after environmental assessments.

While the project seems to be on the way to becoming a reality, the mayor of Squamish, Armand Hurford, is seeking more than ever to limit the impacts of x27;factory on the community.

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The mayor of Squamish , Armand Hurford, wishes to offer an opportunity for residents to have more say on the project through consultations surrounding the issuance of zoning permits.

What sets Squamish apart from other coastal towns where there have been LNG projects is that x27;is that the latter wanted these projects for their economic development. This is not the case for Squamish. This is not part of the community's aspirations.

A quote from Armand Hurford, Mayor of Squamish

We ended up with the pieces that fell between the cracks of the provincial and federal processes, maintains Armand Hurford, observing that too little attention was paid to the effects of the massive arrival of workers in the community. He particularly fears the consequences on housing, whose vacancy rate is at 0.4%, well below the recommended threshold.

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The floating hotel will be used to house hundreds of Woodfibre LNG workers. On the shores of Vancouver, he awaits the issuance of the permit which will allow him to settle near Squamish.

The decisions of the provincial and federal levels of government leave narrow room for maneuver to the municipality of Squamish, according to the mayor, which he will not hesitate to use.

Zoning is the only tool the City has to address housing issues, demographic influx and social issues, he explains .

There is, among other things, the question of the permit for the construction camp, planned in the north of the city, as well as that of the mooring of the ferry, which is waiting quietly on the shores of Vancouver to eventually be transported to Squamish.

But the mayor is adamant that the population be consulted on the issuance of these permits before validating them, because he believes that it was not sufficiently taken into account at the stages of the provincial and federal evaluations.

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According to the mayor, the Woodfibre LNG project does not necessarily fit with the development of Squamish as a recreational and tourism destination, while the city is increasingly popular with lovers of the great outdoors, just a stone's throw from the enchanting setting of Howe Bay.

Asked about the potential economic benefits of the project, the mayor remains to be convinced. Resource extraction typically is boom and bust, so people will come during construction and leave, he notes, adding that his aspirations for the city are more recreational and tourism.

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Tracey Saxby takes a hopeful look at the Squamish River estuary, which flows into Howe Sound. Its restoration in recent years has allowed the return of several species, including salmon. She fears that this project will be a return to square one.

As the 9km tunnel that will transport the LNG begins to be dug, Tracey Saxby is hopeful the tide will turn in favor of opponents, while the American government put liquefied natural gas projects on hold last January.

We have to do the same thing. Governments are being asked to cancel permits for this project until construction has been completed.

Radio-Canada wrote to Woodfibre LNG, the company behind the plant, and Fortis BC, which will be responsible for the pipeline, for feedback. At the time of writing, requests have remained unanswered.

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