Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Rick Shellinick has been trying to subdivide his property for more than ten years and it now looks like he will not be able to have a public zoning meeting anytime in the immediate future. At their last meeting, the Strathcona Regional District Board passed a motion postponing all public meetings on Quadra Island until the province removes restrictions on public gatherings.

This is a controversial project, which in its current incarnation calls for developing 51 residential lots, a campground, marina and two waterfront parks in Gowland Harbour.

>>> The opposing vote

Though this was a meeting of the whole board, it is a rural issue and only the four Regional Directors could vote. All but one of them voted in favour of suspending public meetings.

Cortes Island’s Regional Director Noba Anderson, explained why she opposed the motion: “ I would support a delay for a few months, but it seems very likely that we won’t be able to have mass indoor gatherings for a year or more and I do not think it is appropriate to delay the core business of community land use planning, which is arguably the reason Regional Districts exist, indefinitely.”

Listen to the podcast to find out more

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Rick Shellinick has been trying to subdivide his property for more than ten years and it now looks like he will not be able to have a public zoning meeting anytime in the immediate future. At their last meeting, the Strathcona Regional District Board passed a motion postponing all public meetings on Quadra Island until the province removes restrictions on public gatherings.

This is a controversial project, which in its current incarnation calls for developing 51 residential lots, a campground, marina and two waterfront parks in Gowland Harbour.

>>> The opposing vote

Though this was a meeting of the whole board, it is a rural issue and only the four Regional Directors could vote. All but one of them voted in favour of suspending public meetings.

Cortes Island’s Regional Director Noba Anderson, explained why she opposed the motion: “ I would support a delay for a few months, but it seems very likely that we won’t be able to have mass indoor gatherings for a year or more and I do not think it is appropriate to delay the core business of community land use planning, which is arguably the reason Regional Districts exist, indefinitely.”

Listen to the podcast to find out more

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Funding is being set up for broadband internet on Cortes and Quadra Islands, as well as other relevant parts of the Strathcona Regional District.

“In essence, there are two different categories. There are communities that the Feds consider already served because they have a minimum upload and download speed. Parts of Quadra are like that and parts of Quadra are not. Cortes is not a minimum served community, therefore we can get Last Mile Funding from the Feds. Whereas areas that are considered served are not eligible, explained Cortes Island Regional Director Noba Anderson.“So in Cortes’ instance, [City West Cable and Telephone Corp] receives 90% of the funding required from senior levels of government.”

The SRD is borrowing the funding to service communities considered to be well served, but in its opinion are not well served.

Most of Squirrel Cove, Mansons Landing, Seaford and the part of Whaletown stretching north from Gorge Harbour will receive grant funding.

So will Bold Point, Granite Bay and Open Bay on Quadra Island and the village of Zeballos.

“This is to bring fibre optics to people’s houses, not to the ends of people’s driveways …The intention is that this is at zero cost to the homeowner. We are running on the telephone poles, across the whole island, but getting it from the telephone pole to your house will also be at our cost. If you have telephone poles up your driveway to your house, we will run it on those, and if you have an underground buried service, we will bury it, said Anderson.

The more established southern part of Quadra, along with Gold River, Tahsis, and Sayward are not eligible for grant funding.

So the SRD has agreed to borrow up to $12,540,255 so that City West can build the necessary high-speed broadband infrastructure.

City West agreed to make all payments (principal and interest) for the Indebtedness.

Disbursement of Loan:

$5,700,000 – Quadra Island

$800,000 – Tahsis;

$3,000,000 – Sayward;

$2,500,00 – Gold River

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Funding is being set up for broadband internet on Cortes and Quadra Islands, as well as other relevant parts of the Strathcona Regional District.

“In essence, there are two different categories. There are communities that the Feds consider already served because they have a minimum upload and download speed. Parts of Quadra are like that and parts of Quadra are not. Cortes is not a minimum served community, therefore we can get Last Mile Funding from the Feds. Whereas areas that are considered served are not eligible, explained Cortes Island Regional Director Noba Anderson.“So in Cortes’ instance, [City West Cable and Telephone Corp] receives 90% of the funding required from senior levels of government.”

The SRD is borrowing the funding to service communities considered to be well served, but in its opinion are not well served.

Most of Squirrel Cove, Mansons Landing, Seaford and the part of Whaletown stretching north from Gorge Harbour will receive grant funding.

So will Bold Point, Granite Bay and Open Bay on Quadra Island and the village of Zeballos.

“This is to bring fibre optics to people’s houses, not to the ends of people’s driveways …The intention is that this is at zero cost to the homeowner. We are running on the telephone poles, across the whole island, but getting it from the telephone pole to your house will also be at our cost. If you have telephone poles up your driveway to your house, we will run it on those, and if you have an underground buried service, we will bury it, said Anderson.

The more established southern part of Quadra, along with Gold River, Tahsis, and Sayward are not eligible for grant funding.

So the SRD has agreed to borrow up to $12,540,255 so that City West can build the necessary high-speed broadband infrastructure.

City West agreed to make all payments (principal and interest) for the Indebtedness.

Disbursement of Loan:

$5,700,000 – Quadra Island

$800,000 – Tahsis;

$3,000,000 – Sayward;

$2,500,00 – Gold River

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Telus intends to erect a a 73-meter tall cel phone tower on land owned by the Wei Wai Kai Nation at Drew Harbour, on Quadra Island.

They announced this in the Bird’s Eye on April 21 and April 28, stating “any person may comment by close of business on June 4th.” Interested parties are to email Brian Gregg of SitePath Consulting at [email protected]

Gregg emailed the Strathcona Regional District that “As you know, the land use authority in this instance is the First Nation however we wanted to send your team a copy of the upcoming newspaper notice as a courtesy to keep the SRD aware of TELUS’ plans in the area. We have full support of the We Wai Kai Nation Chief and Council and wanted to ensure that your team is in receipt of this notification as a courtesy.”

In response, the SRD Board is writing a protest to Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) to say they are opposed to this project until the community has been properly consulted.

According to Regional Director Jim Abram, the SRD lost out on Connected Coast funding because Telus gave the government incorrect information. The SRD had to borrow the money.

Regional Director Jim Abram said Telus has been trying to impede Quadra Island’s involvement in the Connected Coast project.

He said the more developed southern part of Quadra Island was not able to obtain funding through the Connected Coast because Telus gave the government misleading information about their internet connection speed.

” … That we were covered to a degree of 50 megabytes down, 10 megabytes up. That is untrue and we (subsequently) proved it with our screenshots. The highest one was 38. most of them were down around the 10s,” said Abram.

“They cut out a huge amount of our funding for the Connected Coast, which we are all involved in. We just passed a motion to borrow a bunch of money and that is because of what Telus has done. in this situation”

“Now they are trying to further impede our movement on the Connected Coast by putting up cell towers that will provide cell service … Also telling people that they can get high speed internet from those cell towers, which I believe they can – at a great deal of cost. That they are not telling us.”

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Telus intends to erect a a 73-meter tall cel phone tower on land owned by the Wei Wai Kai Nation at Drew Harbour, on Quadra Island.

They announced this in the Bird’s Eye on April 21 and April 28, stating “any person may comment by close of business on June 4th.” Interested parties are to email Brian Gregg of SitePath Consulting at [email protected]

Gregg emailed the Strathcona Regional District that “As you know, the land use authority in this instance is the First Nation however we wanted to send your team a copy of the upcoming newspaper notice as a courtesy to keep the SRD aware of TELUS’ plans in the area. We have full support of the We Wai Kai Nation Chief and Council and wanted to ensure that your team is in receipt of this notification as a courtesy.”

In response, the SRD Board is writing a protest to Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) to say they are opposed to this project until the community has been properly consulted.

According to Regional Director Jim Abram, the SRD lost out on Connected Coast funding because Telus gave the government incorrect information. The SRD had to borrow the money.

Regional Director Jim Abram said Telus has been trying to impede Quadra Island’s involvement in the Connected Coast project.

He said the more developed southern part of Quadra Island was not able to obtain funding through the Connected Coast because Telus gave the government misleading information about their internet connection speed.

” … That we were covered to a degree of 50 megabytes down, 10 megabytes up. That is untrue and we (subsequently) proved it with our screenshots. The highest one was 38. most of them were down around the 10s,” said Abram.

“They cut out a huge amount of our funding for the Connected Coast, which we are all involved in. We just passed a motion to borrow a bunch of money and that is because of what Telus has done. in this situation”

“Now they are trying to further impede our movement on the Connected Coast by putting up cell towers that will provide cell service … Also telling people that they can get high speed internet from those cell towers, which I believe they can – at a great deal of cost. That they are not telling us.”

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - It has been a year since the The Campbell River Business Recovery Task Force described fish farms as one of the city’s three key first dollar industries. Mayor Andy Adams said they are Campbell River’s largest economic driver. This is also a sector being phased out over the course of the next year. In the last of a series about the 2021 Federal Budget, North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney talks about funding for salmon farms

She began by acknowledging that indigenous communities and wild salmon stewards have been raising concerns about sea lice from fish farms for some time.

“Recently, in the fisheries and oceans committee, I was reading some pretty powerful testimony about the impact sea lice is having on wild salmon stock. We have to recognize that,” saiid Blaney.

Funding for salmon farms

That said, prior to this budget $55.5 billion was already allocated to a sustainable aquaculture program.

“That is something that is being worked out with the Parliamentary Officer for the DFO, Terry Beech. He promised that this Spring he would have a report that would talk about what sustainable aquaculture would look like into the future. We are still waiting for that.”

“In this budget, the 2021 budget, another $20 million over the next two years was designated for more engagement work, support for Indigenous communities, communities at large, the industry and looking into how the sector can move forward. Of course there is also another $3 million invested, for the next two years, to look at pilot area based management approaches to planning management and monitoring activities of aquaculture on the BC coast.”

“So there are some resources coming, but what we really need to see is what is the plan?”

The government is currently meeting with industry, communities and indigenous leaders.

“We need to see some support for people as we go through this transition and, of course, I have been a longstanding advocate for closed containment so we don’t lose those aquaculture jobs, they just have a period of time when they transition into something else."

Photo credit: Parliament Hill in Ottawa by tsaiproject via Flickr (CC BY SA, 2.0 License)

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - It has been a year since the The Campbell River Business Recovery Task Force described fish farms as one of the city’s three key first dollar industries. Mayor Andy Adams said they are Campbell River’s largest economic driver. This is also a sector being phased out over the course of the next year. In the last of a series about the 2021 Federal Budget, North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney talks about funding for salmon farms

She began by acknowledging that indigenous communities and wild salmon stewards have been raising concerns about sea lice from fish farms for some time.

“Recently, in the fisheries and oceans committee, I was reading some pretty powerful testimony about the impact sea lice is having on wild salmon stock. We have to recognize that,” saiid Blaney.

Funding for salmon farms

That said, prior to this budget $55.5 billion was already allocated to a sustainable aquaculture program.

“That is something that is being worked out with the Parliamentary Officer for the DFO, Terry Beech. He promised that this Spring he would have a report that would talk about what sustainable aquaculture would look like into the future. We are still waiting for that.”

“In this budget, the 2021 budget, another $20 million over the next two years was designated for more engagement work, support for Indigenous communities, communities at large, the industry and looking into how the sector can move forward. Of course there is also another $3 million invested, for the next two years, to look at pilot area based management approaches to planning management and monitoring activities of aquaculture on the BC coast.”

“So there are some resources coming, but what we really need to see is what is the plan?”

The government is currently meeting with industry, communities and indigenous leaders.

“We need to see some support for people as we go through this transition and, of course, I have been a longstanding advocate for closed containment so we don’t lose those aquaculture jobs, they just have a period of time when they transition into something else."

Photo credit: Parliament Hill in Ottawa by tsaiproject via Flickr (CC BY SA, 2.0 License)

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - At the April 28th meeting, The Wilderness Tourism Association (WTA) of BC asked the SRD Board to support DFO’s decision to remove fish farms from the Discovery Islands.

WTA President Breanne Quesnel, of Spirit of the West Adventures on Quadra Island, reminded the board that they also represent the interests of 15 of its member companies operating within the Strathcona Regional District.

“Our ask is that threats to wild salmon, which in turn are a threat to our business and this industry, are removed, and our specific ask for the board is that you do not come out with a letter in support of fish farms,” she said.

If the Board does write a letter, Quesnel asked that it be in support of the DFO and the consultations that occurred.

Four SRD Directors have come out in support of the Aquaculture sector: Mayor Brad Unger of Gold River, who is also Chair of the SRD Board; Mayor Andy Adams of Campbell River; Mayor Mark Baker of Sayward; and Campbell River Director Charlie Cornfield.

Subsequent to that, the entire SRD Board signed on to a letter protesting the DFO’s failure to consult them on a decision that will have immense economic impacts on the region.

“My memory on this one, is that in January we passed a resolution stating our concern about the lack of process. I do not believe this board has taken a position one way or the other,” said Cortes Island Regional Director Noba Anderson.

Jim Abram, Regional Director for most of the Discovery Islands, pointed out that two of the three WTA presenters – Breanne Quesnel and Ross Campbell – were his constituents.

Jamie Boulding, President of the Strathcona Park Lodge, intended to inform the board how important wild salmon were to his business, but was not able to speak due to connection problems.

Quesnel told the SRD board, “We speak to you today as business owners within the community, as Wilderness Tourism Association members as well as owner/operators of thriving eco-tourism companies. We are coming before you for several reasons. We want to ensure that the board is appraised of the value of the wilderness and adventure tourism sector in this region … We ask that the SRD work with various governments and levels of government to assist with the transition of the net pens out of the Discovery Islands.

“The Wilderness tourism operators in the region include lodges, whale and wildlife watching tours, bear viewing companies, kayaking companies, boat charters, sport fishing and many others. These companies depend on and thrive when there is healthy wild salmon stock and are considered part of the wild salmon economy.”

(There is much more in the podcast)

She added, “The removal of these farms from the Discovery Islands will benefit the communities and wild salmon economy up and down the coast, including here is the Strathcona Regional District.”

Quesnel reminded the SRD that while the aquaculture and fishing sectors contribute $3.3 billion in GDP to the province, tourism brings in more than $8.7 billion.

More than 5.5 million tourists come to Vancouver Island every year, spending over $2.2 billion. This translates into over 60,000 jobs.

“Within the Discovery Islands, there are over 60 tourism businesses that directly depend on wilderness and wildlife and these businesses of course provide many spin-off benefits to the community. The tourism industry in this region is estimated at between $40 and $50 million per year,” she said.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - At the April 28th meeting, The Wilderness Tourism Association (WTA) of BC asked the SRD Board to support DFO’s decision to remove fish farms from the Discovery Islands.

WTA President Breanne Quesnel, of Spirit of the West Adventures on Quadra Island, reminded the board that they also represent the interests of 15 of its member companies operating within the Strathcona Regional District.

“Our ask is that threats to wild salmon, which in turn are a threat to our business and this industry, are removed, and our specific ask for the board is that you do not come out with a letter in support of fish farms,” she said.

If the Board does write a letter, Quesnel asked that it be in support of the DFO and the consultations that occurred.

Four SRD Directors have come out in support of the Aquaculture sector: Mayor Brad Unger of Gold River, who is also Chair of the SRD Board; Mayor Andy Adams of Campbell River; Mayor Mark Baker of Sayward; and Campbell River Director Charlie Cornfield.

Subsequent to that, the entire SRD Board signed on to a letter protesting the DFO’s failure to consult them on a decision that will have immense economic impacts on the region.

“My memory on this one, is that in January we passed a resolution stating our concern about the lack of process. I do not believe this board has taken a position one way or the other,” said Cortes Island Regional Director Noba Anderson.

Jim Abram, Regional Director for most of the Discovery Islands, pointed out that two of the three WTA presenters – Breanne Quesnel and Ross Campbell – were his constituents.

Jamie Boulding, President of the Strathcona Park Lodge, intended to inform the board how important wild salmon were to his business, but was not able to speak due to connection problems.

Quesnel told the SRD board, “We speak to you today as business owners within the community, as Wilderness Tourism Association members as well as owner/operators of thriving eco-tourism companies. We are coming before you for several reasons. We want to ensure that the board is appraised of the value of the wilderness and adventure tourism sector in this region … We ask that the SRD work with various governments and levels of government to assist with the transition of the net pens out of the Discovery Islands.

“The Wilderness tourism operators in the region include lodges, whale and wildlife watching tours, bear viewing companies, kayaking companies, boat charters, sport fishing and many others. These companies depend on and thrive when there is healthy wild salmon stock and are considered part of the wild salmon economy.”

(There is much more in the podcast)

She added, “The removal of these farms from the Discovery Islands will benefit the communities and wild salmon economy up and down the coast, including here is the Strathcona Regional District.”

Quesnel reminded the SRD that while the aquaculture and fishing sectors contribute $3.3 billion in GDP to the province, tourism brings in more than $8.7 billion.

More than 5.5 million tourists come to Vancouver Island every year, spending over $2.2 billion. This translates into over 60,000 jobs.

“Within the Discovery Islands, there are over 60 tourism businesses that directly depend on wilderness and wildlife and these businesses of course provide many spin-off benefits to the community. The tourism industry in this region is estimated at between $40 and $50 million per year,” she said.