WATCH: Residents of Shawnigan Lake north of Victoria are fighting a battle against a contaminated soil dump. Kylie Stanton has the story.
Over 1000 people held a rally at the legislature today to protest a new dump site in the Shawnigan Lake area for contaminated soil.
“All you need is two eyes to see it’s a bad idea to put toxic soils in a watershed looking down on the drinking water for 12,000 people,” said NDP leader John Horgan to the crowd.
The site, a former rock quarry, will now receive up to 100,000 tons of contaminated soil per year for fifty years. It’s outraged many in the community, but the project operated by South Island Aggregates received a permit from the provincial government months ago.
READ MORE: Shawnigan Lake residents fight against contaminated soil dump site
“For this Ministry of Mines to once again do whatever this company needs for it to make money, despite whatever damage it does to our community, is astonishing to me,” said Shawnigan Lake Area Director Sonia Furstenau at the rally.
However, a petition circulated at the rally may be in vain. Already much of the site is “open for business”, according to South Island Aggregates.
“As of today, Cobble Hill Holdings Ltd’s lot 23, is a legal, fully permitted, provincially certified waste soils receiving facility. We are in full compliance with our various permits,” said Michael Kelly, the president of South Island Aggregates’ parent company Cobble Hill Holdings.
Residents, however, are determined to keep up the fight.
“We will win this battle,” said Calvin Cook, Shawnigan Residents’ Association President.
“It’s too important to the citizens of Shawnigan Lake, and it’s too important to the citizens of British Columbia.”
– With files from Kylie Stanton
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