Formal public comment period needed on new Ajax site plan, says KAPA
NEWS/ AJAX — The B.C. Environmental Assessment Office should allow the public a new window to provide formal comments on the new Ajax mine plan, says an opponent of the project.
John Schleiermacher, a member of the Kamloops Area Preservation Association, said today he understands the issue was raised at a June 23 meeting of the EAO’s Technical Working Group and KGHM Ajax but no one pushed for a new public comment period.
Public needs new comment period, says KAPA spokesman.
The Kamloops Community Advisory Group, another committee set up under the oversight of the EAO, was not invited to the meeting, Schleiermacher said.
“So much for government promises of fairness and transparency in the assessment process,” he said.
“We also learned that the TWG has been given just four weeks in the middle of the summer holidays to comment on the new mine plan, even though several TWG members referred to very substantial changes being made to the mine plan.
“How can technical experts even make comments when the proponent has only provided a few skimpy details about the new mine plan?” Schleiermacher asked.
“Why are the citizens of Kamloops not being allowed to study the details of the new mine plan and provide comments, when all of the mine activities are now slated to be built upstream and upwind of our city? Why are the residents of Kamloops not being provided with a rigorous and transparent environmental assessment as promised?”
The TWG includes representatives from all levels of government and First Nations, while the CAG is made up of stakeholder groups.
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Politics and environmental science are a bad mix. If it weren’t for politics, the EAO wouldn’t have to show deference to KGHM. Why do I feel like we’re about to become some sort of banana republic?
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