“Floating fence installed around oil terminal construction zone
Owners of North Shore eco-tourism businesses and members of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation say they’re upset and disheartened after a large floating construction fence with razor wire on top was installed 350 metres into Burrard Inlet in preparation for work on an expanded Kinder Morgan oil terminal.
Bob Putnam, co-owner of Deep Cove Kayak, said he was out kayaking in the area of Admiralty Point on Monday when he noticed the fence, made up of heavy-duty wire mesh strung between large floats installed in the inlet adjacent to Kinder Morgan’s Westridge oil terminal.
Putnam said he was surprised to see work on the terminal happening so quickly, although he’s long been concerned about the project’s potential impact on the inlet.
Putnam said he’s worried the large area covered by the berth expansions for oil tankers will push marine traffic in the inlet closer to the North Shore and Cates Park. That’s bad news for his customers, he said, who often launch their kayaks from Cates Park to paddle to Maplewood Flats.
Putnam said the large floating fence, warnings, and razor wire “just kind of seemed over the top. … It’s all very militaristic and sinister.”
Putnam said he was surprised to learn that public consultations have already taken place on the construction, and permits were issued at the end of August.
“I would consider myself a stakeholder. I haven’t heard about it,” he said of the work now underway.”
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