City of Delta F.17 COUNCIL REPORT Regular Meeting To: Mayor and Council From: Parks, Recreation & Culture and Corporate Services Departments Date: July 05,2018 Meetings with Federal Officials in Ottawa The following report has been reviewed and endorsed by the Acting City Manager. • RECOMMENDATIONS: A. THAT staff follow up on action items as outlined in this report. B. THAT thank you letters be prepared for the Mayor's signature to each of the Ministers that made themselves or their staff available to meet with the delegation. C. THAT thi? report be provided to Tsawwassen First Nation. D. THAT further follow up occur with the Province on the topics covered by the delegation. • PURPOSE: The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the recent Mayor's delegation to Ottawa to meet with federal government officials. • BACKGROUND: At its May 14, 2018 Regular Meeting, Council approved a delegation to Ottawa to meet with key federal government ministers and their senior staff. With scheduling assistance from the office of the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Member of Parliament for Delta, Mayor Lois E. Jackson, Ken Kuntz, Acting City Manager, Neil Dubord, Chief Constable, and Dona Packer, Executive Assistant to the Mayor, met with officials over a period of two days on June 6 and 7, 2018. At the Mayor's invitation, Chief Bryce Williams and Richard Zerr, Chief Administrative Officer for Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN), also attended the meetings. Page 2 of 8 Meetings with Federal Officials in Ottawa July 05, 2018 II DISCUSSION: Minister Qualtrough and her staff had arranged meetings with each of the appropriate ministries for the topics as noted in this report. Prior to the individual meetings Minister Qualtrough reviewed each of the topics with the delegation. Minister Qualtrough's comments are captured within each topic heading. Briefing notes on the following issues were distributed as appropriate at each meeting, and are included in this report (Attachments A to D). Canada's National Public Alerting System June 6, 2018 meeting with: Alyx Holland, Senior Policy Advisor to the Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Shaun Govender, Director of Operations, Office of Minister of Public Services & Procurement, Tyson Scholfield, PSPC Summer Intern, Marielle Hossack, Parliamentary Assistant to Honourable Carla Qualtrough, and Bernadette Kudzin, Constituency Manager for Honourable Carla Qualtrough: Delta requested that the federal government develop policies that allow local municipalities to access the National Public Alerting System (NPAS) to inform the public for states of local emergencies. • Mayor Jackson provided examples of local states of emergency in Delta whereby use of the NPAS for the community would be beneficial. Mayor Jackson noted how quickly situations change in an emergency and how critical communication is for the safety of the community. • Chief Williams pointed out the recent earthquake in Alaska noting that he received many calls about the possibility of a tsunami. • Minister Qualtrough supports the concept of including provinces, territories and local governments in the use of this technology. • Ms. Holland advised the government is currently undertaking a strategy to coordinate with provinces and territories on the development of Emergency Management Policies. • Ms. Holland indicated that the technology has the potential to be used at a local level. • Ms. Holland noted there are merits for the system to be used by local governments but requires protocols to be developed on access and use of the system. • The federal government is focusing on a national strategy to be in place by the end of 2018. Further announcements are expected this fall. Page 3 of 8 Meetings with Federal Officials in Ottawa July 05, 2018 George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project: June 6, 2018 meeting with: Shane McCloskey, Senior Policy Advisor (Western Desk) to the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport; and Bernadette Kudzin, Constituency Manager for Honourable Carla Qualtrough: Delta outlined the national importance of this river crossing and requested that the federal government support the George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project. • Mayor Jackson and Mr. Kuntz provided an overview of the project while Chief Dubord highlighted the safety aspects. In particular, the following items where highlighted: o The national economic importance of this crossing as part of the Asia Pacific trade corridor ($200 billion annually) o Delta is home to the largest sea port in Western Canada o BC Ferries has its busiest terminal located in Delta o This crossing provides access to the United States through the Interstate 5 corridor o Greater than 10,000 transit riders use this crossing each day o Significant public support exists for a new crossing (Ipsos Reid) o Project is ready to proceed with all environmental certificates, contractor pricing received, and it is under budget o This crossing has been identified as a lifeline for south of the Fraser in case of emergency, yet the tunnel is vulnerable to failure o Current crossing configuration makes emergency response challenging o A political situation is stalling the project • Chief Williams reiterated the importance of goods movement and shared his concerns regarding safety issues transiting the tunnel, particularly seismic. • Mr. McCloskey noted Minister Garneau has visited Deltaport and TFN, knows the importance of the area, and is very much aware of the project. • Minister Qualtrough agrees the project is a priority. Her Ministry owns several federal bridges across the nation. She spoke recently with Robin Silvester, Port of Vancouver, who concurred it would be a good project for the National Trade Corridors Fund. • The National Trade Corridors Fund exists for these types of projects. Funding partners are necessary i.e. provincial, municipal, trade, industry. • The Ministry is open to looking at the George Massey Replacement Project if funding partners can be identified. .. Minister Qualtrough's office offered to assist with further enquiries or concerns and forward those onto Minister Garneau and Mr. McCloskey. Page 4 of 8 Meetings with Federal Officials in Ottawa July 05, 2018 Subsequent Comment: • On June 7, 2018, Minister Qualtrough spoke with Minister Garneau during the House vote break. The Minister confirmed that the George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project is eligible for funding with partners. George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project: June 7,2018 meeting with: MP Marc Miller, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities; Marielle Hossack, Parliamentary Assistant; and Bernadette Kudzin, Constituency Manager: • Mayor Jackson, Mr. Kuntz, Chief Dubord and Chief Williams provided the same overview as the previous day. It The BC government had identified the project as needing funding under the previous New Building Canada Fund; however, the Province subsequently removed it. The project belongs in the Pacific Gateway file under Transport Canada's portfolio. It MP Miller recommended that Delta and TFN reach out to the regional MPs who are good champions - it is important to continue to have dialogue. It Delta and TFN to prepare a joint letter. Cannabis legalization and Regulation June 6, 2018 meeting with: MP Bill Blair, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General (Honourable Wilson-Raybould) and to the Minister of Health (Honourable Petipas Taylor); Radey Barrack, Legislative Assistant to Bill Blair; Marielle Hossack, Parliamentary Assistant to Honourable Carla Qualtrough; and Bernadette Kudzin, Constituency Manager for Honourable Carla Qualtrough: Delta requested that the legislation remove the ability for personal cultivation, prohibit the cUltivation of cannabis on agricultural land, expedite the development of roadside cannabis detection devices and postpone the sale of edibles beyond the 2019 timeline until regulations have been developed to address the risk associated with these products. It MP Blair advised the Senate will be forwarding its decision to the House later that day and noted there are some concerns with Bill C-46 as it exists. • MP Blair has heard the concerns expressed about cultivating cannabis in the Agricultural Land Reserve and in greenhouses, both in BC and Southern Ontario. • In response to MP Blair's enquiry if Delta has any bylaws to enforce, Mayor Jackson advised that authority comes under the BC Agricultural Land Commission and the provincial government's Right to Farm Act. Page 5 of 8 Meetings with Federal Officials in Ottawa July 05, 2018 .. MP Blair noted the Minister will have the authority to reject certain applications/licenses; currently working hard to clarify the regulations around applications. • MP Blair does not believe the federal government has the authority to regulate where cannabis can be CUltivated - that rests with the provinces noting societal attitudes are different in BC and the other provinces. fit With respect to the sale of edibles, it is very complicated to regulate. Edibles will remain prohibited for 12 months until the federal government can regulate. Mayor Jackson provided MP Blair with a copy of Delta Fire's event log wherein it noted a young child had taken seriously ill after digesting a sibling's edibles. • MP Blair noted he has had dialogue with the Prime Minister with respect to taking the politics out of the issue and thinking more about the communities