Construction Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion (TMEP) to start February 2019 and the Demise of the Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW)?

In part 1 I proved that there is no long term economic case for continuing to expand the production of bitumen and heavy oil in Canada. The following solution is based on the recommendations of marine environmental experts and addresses the majority of economic and environmental concerns. Here is the entire emergency measures document.

For additional information see the Raincoast website

I invite you to see how the government mixes some good information with propaganda here.

Why propaganda? The supposed benefits from TMEP are based on the taxes of all Canadians paying for expensive infrastructure with, at best, short term utility. If advocates of this course of action have proof of long-term end-user contracts, that would change the entire conversation however, to my knowledge none exist. Therefore, until proven otherwise; the entire idea of selling crude oil to Asian customer’s is based on arrogance and hope, as analyzed in Part 1. Furthermore, let’s assume that we are able to secure some customers and make a couple of billion dollars profit; is it worth the price that must be paid? Is it worth the additional risk? There must be another way to employ people, profit, and live symbiotically with our environment.

The following are some recommendations of the experts I am including to highlight how my solution could work for EVERYONE

“Fishing management actions are required to make mature Chinook salmon on their return migration to the Salish Sea in late-spring through early fall, and spring Chinook along coastal areas during late winter and spring (March – May) accessible to foraging SRKW. In addition to increasing abundance of mature Chinook within critical habitat, identified SRKW foraging refuge areas2 need to be free from small vessel traffic and undergo dramatic reductions in overall vessel (including shipping) noise. Vessel noise and disturbance near whales can disrupt foraging and socializing activities and interfere with effective echolocation and inter-whale2 See description on page 44 communication that is critical to normal, stress-free foraging and socializing (Williams et al.

2014a, b, Houghton et al. 2015, Holt et al. 2017, Tollit et al. 2017). The following actions are required during the late-spring-early fall period in the Salish Sea and surrounding environs:

Designation of SRKW feeding refuges within existing and proposed critical habitat designated under Canada’s Species At Risk Act (SARA) and the US Endangered Species Act (ESA) that assure whales the ability to successfully forage in key feeding habitats without noise, interference, and disturbance from vessel traffic, combined with Measures to increase the abundance of Chinook salmon in refuge areas and critical habitat to assure that SRKW have the highest priority for accessing these fish.

Securing SRKW access to more mature Chinook salmon.

Canadian scientists have identified key feeding refuges in designated critical habitat under SARA and in additional areas recently identified as candidate critical habitat. These refuges should be in effect from May through October and include the following areas:

The coastline of Southwest Vancouver Island from Barkley Sound to the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca west to the continental shelf break at the 200 m isobaths, including Swiftsure Bank. The coastline of Southwest Vancouver Island through the Juan de Fuca Strait east to Sooke Inlet. Haro Strait and the southwest side of San Juan Island and Stewart Island to Turn Point, Boundary Pass to Plumper Sound and Active Pass and to East Point in the Gulf Islands, critical habitat in the approaches to the Fraser River.”

One potential solution

At minimum adopt all the recommendations of the emergency order immediately.
Reverse the trend of ever increasing noise, interference, and disturbance from vessel traffic by creating a “noise free” marine corridor, prohibit access of vessels that exceed a scientifically determined decibel level. This may be achieved by allowing access during certain times of the year (when the whales are not around) but I defer that recommendation to experts.
Draw up a plan to encourage the conversion of all vessels using BC waterways

ex. Hike Insurance rates of vessels that exceed the decibel level and discount the insurance of vessels that do not exceed the decibel level, likely battery powered

Have a standard decibel level on which insurance rates are based.

ex. Levy tolls against foreign registered ships that exceed the decibel level

Build one or more modular offshore platform/s with the following capabilities initially:
House a LNG plant to export LNG at any time of year
Build an electric fleet of cargo ships to service the platform and further eliminate noise and traffic.
Heavily restrict or close the wild Chinook salmon fishery and offer those affected first priority for platform construction jobs including any required education.

Assuming that most of our trading partners will be, at best, very slow to upgrade their shipping vessels to electric drives it will be necessary to create a facility or facilities to eliminate the need for commercial ships to enter the Salish Sea and the port of Vancouver.

The optimal location for the platform I will also defer to experts. Over time I would expect that further modules would be added and larger and larger volumes of commercial shipping traffic could be diverted.

I would like to reiterate that only an LNG pipeline would address almost all environmental concerns, alternatively, crude oil pipelines pose the most significant threat to the health of any environment.

In summary, the measures I have outlined above I believe will give the SRKW a chance to avoid extinction.

According to experts “As of August 2018, the population has seen no successful births in three years. A 2017 study on their fecundity found nearly 70% of detected pregnancies between 2008 and 2014 failed due to nutritional stress associated with lack of prey Wasser et al.2017). Nutritional stress from low salmon abundance is exacerbated by noise and disturbance from vessel traffic (including fishing vessels, whale watching vessels and larger commercial vessel traffic) that reduces successful foraging (Ayers et al. 2012, Williams et al.2014 a,b Houghton et al. 2015, Holt et al. 2017, Tollit et al. 2017, Seeley et al. 2017).”

Based on current trends, further neglect will doom the SRKW sooner than later. One may argue that the cost of such a venture is too high and the whales are on their own. I would argue that we cannot afford NOT to start now, (the analysis laid out in detail in part 1; the renewable energy genie is out of the bottle). Sadly this reality has not registered with everyone and I would say that preparations to thrive within this new reality have been slow.

My apathy is based on the fact that very little or nothing has been accomplished in protecting wild Chinook stocks and the SRKW. A lack of proposed options, absence of further ommunication[1], and the willingness to use violence to advance towards their goal[2], highlights that the will of the majority is now accepting of the consequences[3] of this path:

A path that will likely experience:

Short term[4] growth in crude oil demand, long term crude oil to decline guaranteed
Create many short-term[5] jobs, and as per the conference board of Canada page 34.[6] (On page 33 the conference says that at the time Kinder Morgan had long term contracts from 13 shippers to take the oil. Shippers are not end-users and the pipeline will not be ready for years).
Increasing competition in an already crowded market from competitors with better products including lower transportation and production costs.
Continuing destruction of land and nearby waterways by open-pit mining
May trample on Canadian citizens rights[7] (people may die in the process)
The SRKW are condemned to extinction
The quality of the waters off the west coast of Canada will continue to degrade, using biodiversity as a measure.
A bitumen spill of any kind would be an environmental CATASTROPHE

I propose a course of action that would:

Create many long term jobs; In addition to the 342 permanent maintenance jobs there would be: operating and maintenance personnel for the platform, possibly shipbuilding jobs (should we decide to build or refurbish cargo vessels here), and operating personnel for the new cargo fleet.
Guaranteed long term demand, the market for LNG is rapidly growing[8]
The market is highly competitive[9] but because of rapid growth there should be plenty of room
Slow and hopefully stop the destruction of Northern Alberta,
Much of the pipeline will be underwater and a constructive consultation process involving several different routes should alleviate any unnecessary friction
Give the SRKW a chance to survive
Reversal of systematically increasing noise levels
An LNG leak and/or explosion’s effects would be contained

It is possible to have our cake and eat it too!

All based on FACTS[10].

In writing this, my hope is to: reopen the lines of communication, avoid potentially lethal confrontations, and provide the populace with good jobs, all with the goal of achieving a result that is acceptable to everyone. It is not ok that I knowingly participated in the destruction of parts of our home when there are better alternatives[11].

1 of 8 Billion

Construction Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion (TMEP) to start February 2019 and the Demise of the Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW)?

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