July 16, 2019

B.C. Today – Daily Report July 16, 2019 Quotation of the day “There is crisis in the forest industry that is having ripple effects throughout the entire provincial economy and we have a government that is basically sitting on its hands and doing nothing.” Liberal Forests critic John Rustad says the NDP government is “missing in action” while hundreds of B.C. forestry workers face unemployment. Today in B.C. The House is adjourned for the summer recess. Today’s events July 16 at 10 a.m. – Langley Premier John Horgan and Health Minister Adrian Dix will be joined by representatives from Fraser Health for an announcement about local health-care services at Langley Memorial Hospital. July 16 at 10:30 a.m. – Salt Spring Island Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Selina Robinson and Green Party MLA Adam Olsen (Saanich North and the Islands) will celebrate a new housing development on Bishop’s Walk Road. July 16 at 11 a.m. – Sidney Scientists with Fisheries and Oceans Canada will hold a news conference at the Institute of Ocean Sciences before departing on a two-week expedition to survey the Explorer Seamount — the largest underwater volcano in Canadian waters. Their research will help inform ocean conservation and management decision-making of the Offshore Pacific Area of Interest, which is being proposed as a future Oceans Act Marine Protected Area. July 16 at 4:15 p.m. – Cranbrook Federal Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi will make an energy efficiency announcement at the ʔaq̓am Administration Building. July 16 at 6 p.m. – Vancouver Environment and Climate Change Strategy Minister George Heyman and Minister of State for Childcare Katrina Chen will both attend a BBQ event in Heyman’s Vancouver—Fairview riding “to celebrate the two year anniversary of the BC NDP government.” The event will take place in the courtyard at 506 West 16th Avenue. July 16 at 6 p.m. – Merritt Children and Family Development Minister Katrine Conroy will attend a meet and greet at the Mughal Garden Restaurant. July 16 at 6:30 p.m. – Courtenay The B.C. Green Party’s Courtenay—Comox riding association will host its formation meeting at The Prime Chophouse and Wine Bar. Topics of conversation ● Chevron Corp. has submitted a revised plan to the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office for its proposed liquified natural gas terminal near Kitimat — a separate proposal from LNG Canada’s facility near the same community. Chevron and its partner, Australia’s Woodside Petroleum Ltd., are hoping to resume the project, which stalled in 2011, by using electric motors, among other new tech, to comply with the province’s 2018 LNG framework, which emphasizes low-emission production. ○ “The [Kitimat LNG] plant will outperform current best-in-class global LNG plants and the more stringent government of B.C.’s LNG intensity benchmark,” per the new submission. “The KLNG expansion project will utilize electric-motor-drive technology for all liquefaction process and utility compressors, pumps and fans, and will purchase power from BC Hydro.” ○ B.C.’s environmental assessment office has submitted a request to the federal environmental assessment agency to conduct “a substituted environmental assessment on behalf of the federal government” for the project. ● Building an ultra-high-speed rail link between Vancouver, Seattle, WA, and Portland, OR, could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by six million tonnes over 40 years, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation’s business case analysis of the transportation proposal. According to the analysis, the mega-project could be built for between $24 and $42 billion — as estimated in 2017 — and could “conservatively” expect to see between 1.7 and 3.1 million annual riders upon opening. The analysis also estimates the project could generate $355 billion in economic growth and 200,000 construction-related and ongoing operating jobs. ○ Trains would travel at more than 350 kilometres per hour, reducing travel times between each city to a single hour. ○ B.C. Jobs, Trade and Technology Minister Bruce Ralston called the study “necessary good work” that will give the province — which contributed $300,000 to the business case analysis and another $300,000 to the “next exploratory steps” related to the project — “a clearer picture” of the rail proposal’s possibilities. ● B.C. Liberal Child and Family Development critic Laurie Throness took to Twitter over the weekend to encourage British Columbians to go and see the controversial anti-abortion film Unplanned. “I thought it was generally fair; certainly a serious, impactful true story, well-presented,” Throness, who spoke at an anti-abortion rally at the legislature in May, tweeted. “People were wiping their eyes afterward, including me, and I felt a great sadness for our culture. But also hope.” ● A crowdfunding campaign in support of Vivian Krause’s filmmaking efforts is accepting foreign donations, according to reporting from Press Progress. Krause’s work tracing foreign funding for environmental campaigns has been cited by B.C. Liberal MLAs and spurred Alberta’s UCP government to launch its own investigation. Two individuals — one from the United Kingdom and one from the United States — told Press Progress they donated to Krause’s campaign using only their first name and last initial. ○ During an interview on CBC’s The Weekly earlier this year, Krause said, “I’m asking questions about other people’s funding, it’s only fair that I disclose my own.” However, Krause has reportedly not responded to Press Progress’ questions about funding for her forthcoming film. ● A 21-year B.C. old man died of rabies in Vancouver over the weekend, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced. B.C.’s last rabies diagnosis occurred in 2003 and was also fatal — there have been only two rabies deaths in the province since 1924. ○ The man, whose identity has not been made public, contracted the disease after coming into contact with a bat on Vancouver Island in mid-May. He developed observable symptoms six weeks later and died at Vancouver's St. Paul's Hospital on Saturday. News briefs - Governmental Ministry of Children and Family Development The ministry is tripling the maximum funding amount available through Childcare B.C.’s New Spaces Fund, which supports public sector and non-profit organizations create publicly owned and operated childcare spaces. Public sector organizations, including local and First Nations governments, school districts and tribal councils, will be eligible for up to $3 million, while non-profit organizations will now be eligible for up to $1.5 million. Partnering with local organizations is “the best way” for the government to realize its goal of having accessible, affordable childcare available across the province, according to Children and Family Development Minister Katrine Conroy. “By offering incentives to these sectors, we can strengthen communities and give families access to the services they need right on their doorstep, meaning they no longer have to give up valuable family time to get to their child care centre far from where they live,” Conroy said in a statement. The ministry is also plans to introduce a new process that will allow experienced public-sector and non-profit organizations to apply for funding for multiple projects at once. Information on the process will be available “in the coming weeks,” according to the ministry. News briefs - Non-governmental B.C. Liberal Party The B.C. Liberal caucus is renewing its call for the NDP government to “take immediate action to stem job losses” in the province’s forestry sector. In June, the opposition caucus released a letter, outlining steps the government should take to help keep the ailing industry afloat in the face of multiple mill closures and curtailments in the Interior. Suggestions included slashing stumpage rates and exempting industry operators from the carbon tax. Liberal MLAs have been visiting affected communities over the past month, holding roundtable events in Quesnel, Chetwynd, Mackenzie, Fort St. John, 100 Mile House, Williams Lake, Ashcroft, Merritt, Clearwater, Prince George, Valemount, McBride, Vavenby, Canoe, Revelstoke and Cache Creek. Yesterday Donna Barnett (Cariboo—Chilcotin), the party’s rural caucus chair, proposed five further actions, including prioritizing social and mental health services for workers affected by mill closures and putting displaced forestry employees to work on wildfire mitigation projects. “If we don’t get any immediate cooperation from the provincial government, our caucus is prepared to appeal directly to the federal government,” Barnett said in a statement. Meanwhile, Liberal MLAs Doug Clovechok (Columbia River—Revelstoke) and Greg Kyllo (Shuswap) called on Premier John Horgan to keep a promise he made during debate on the estimates for the premier’s office in May — to meet with mayors from Revelstoke and Sicamous regarding their concerns over caribou conservation strategies. “All we are trying to do is get community leaders into a discussion with this government, but John Horgan and the NDP don’t seem to care about the voices of those actually affected by their arbitrary decisions,” Clovechok said in a statement. “The NDP’s botched caribou plan will have a devastating impact on this region, which is already struggling in the midst of a forestry crisis that John Horgan

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