‘I want some reassurance’: 6th sinkhole hits Langley property near TMX pipeline construction

When Rob Rindt walked out onto his Langley, B.C., property Tuesday morning and saw a work crew peering into a large hole, he had a sinking feeling.

“It was pretty deep,” Rindt told Global News.

The crew, workers with the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, were assessing a sinkhole about three metres (10 feet) wide and three metres deep.

And it wasn’t the first to crop up. Rindt says six sinkholes have now opened on or near his property since April.

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Rindt, a Township of Langley municipal councillor, grows sod for turf fields and co-owns the Roots and Wings distillery on the property.

“It is a huge concern,” he said.

“If I am driving around in the tractor or one of my brothers — or more importantly, my kids drive around in golf carts and gators here practically daily.'”

Across the street from Rindt’s property, Trans Mountain contractors are drilling underground for the massive pipeline project, which will twin the existing line between Alberta and Burnaby.

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He spoke with Global News in June when the fifth hole — about nine metres (30 feet) deep — opened up.

After that incident, he said the company sent a team with ground-penetrating radar who assured him everything was safe and solid in the area.

He’s now trying to source an independent expert to assess the area.

“We shouldn’t have to do that or worry about kids falling into sinkholes,” he said.

“I want some reassurance it’s not going to happen again, a little more than last time because we are sitting here looking at a hole.”

In an email, a spokesperson for Trans Mountain said the company believed the incident was weather-related.

“Due to weather conditions including heavy rain in the area, there was a formation of a small void in the ground after the pipe was installed. Our team has filled the void,” the company said.

“Trans Mountain is actively working with the affected landowner and will employ further mitigation if required.”

Trans Mountain added that pipe installation in the area was complete, with cleanup now underway.

It said it had also completed “extensive” seismic surveys to assess subsurface conditions, and would continue to monitor them.