In what is expected to be a lengthy legal battle, protesters have asked the B.C. Supreme Court to issue an injunction against construction of an elevated multi-level highway through ecologically sensitive Eagleridge Bluffs in West Vancouver. In the same dispute, contractor Peter Kiewit Sons Co. requested an injunction to remove the protesters from the site of the proposed highway so that construction can begin.
The Coalition to Save Eagleridge Bluffs at Horseshoe Bay, which organized the protest that began at the bluffs in mid-April, has also filed a lawsuit against what the Coalition alleges is the provincial government's "many infractions" of the Environmental Assessment Certificate.
"We think that our case is extremely strong … given the fact that they've broken all the commitments and rules under the Environment Assessment Certificate," says Dennis Perry, President of the Coalition.
Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon in turn has criticized the protesters for linking the highway project to the 2010 Winter Olympics and claims the Coalition has repeatedly made false statements. Falcon also warned the protesters that they could face "significant penalties" if the contractor incurs financial losses due to work delays.
The Coalition says that if the multi-level highway goes ahead it will destroy two fragile ecosystems: the Larsen Creek Wetlands and an endangered arbutus forest. It will also affect the Baden Powell Trail and threaten the survival of two already endangered species that live in the wetlands—the red-legged frog and the alligator lizard. The Coalition claims the contractors have not acquired the necessary environmental approvals for construction to proceed.
Perry says viable alternatives that have no negative impact, such as adding a third lane to the existing highway or building a four-lane divided tunnel underneath the bluffs, were rejected by the government. He says all the municipalities in the Greater Vancouver Regional District opposed the overland route.
"The decision to do the overland route has nothing going for it," says Perry. "You couldn't have come up with a more destructive way to build a highway."
Meanwhile, Transportation Ministry spokesperson Mike Long told The Epoch Times that that Falcon has no intention of changing his mind and opting for the tunnel instead of the highway. Falcon contends that the overland highway will be safer than the tunnel, cost $70 million less, and result in less damage to the environment.
But NDP Environment Critic David Chudnovsky, who has worked to bring forward some of the Coalition's points of view, says the group's concerns regarding the safety of the overland route and resulting damage to the environment are "real and should be taken seriously."
He says it's "unfortunate" that the Transportation Minister refuses to meet with the residents of West Vancouver, despite repeated requests, and adds that neither Falcon nor West Vancouver-Garibaldi MLA Joan McIntyre attended a town hall meeting in January to discuss the issue.
"That kind of treatment of people in the communities is guaranteed to make them more frustrated and make these situations more difficult," says Chudnovsky.
Meanwhile, Perry says the resolve of the protesters camped at the bluffs is strong and that the occupation will continue. Long-time activist and bluffs protester Betty Krawczyk, who has been jailed seven times over the years for protesting against clear-cut logging, says the government "ought to be ashamed of themselves."
"This is my stance, and one that I hope other people would find in their hearts to take, is that we must stand up and be counted and refuse to allow governments to run roughshod over us," says Krawczyk.
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