Excerpt from the front page of the Nanaimo News Bulletin – June 11, 2008

“Trail fight wins federal support

 By Toby Gorman 

Federal members of parliament are taking notice of a controversial asphalt trail that runs through the Jingle Pot Marsh. Environment stewards say the trail fails to follow environmental guidelines and is harming fish and wildlife. The City of Nanaimo says the trail doesn’t break any regulations and has become a well-used multipurpose passage through the marsh.

NANAIMO, BC – Environmental stewards in opposition to a city-built trail through Jingle Pot Marsh are getting a measure of support from Ottawa.

Rory Rickwood and Roger Giles sent a petition to the Office of the Auditor General regarding the three-metre wide trail that also employs page-wire fencing along its length and received “an encouraging response” from federal Environment Minister John Baird.

Since the trail was built two years ago, Rickwood has adamantly maintained the pathway violates environmental guidelines, while fencing creates a danger for the low-flying Virginia rail that nests in the area.

Rickwood also maintains the asphalt leaches a toxic chemical that creates a risk to fish.

In Baird’s response, he says “the existing paved trail through the wetland poses a potential risk to wildlife and may impede movement of wildlife, including species at risk, [and] fencing may impede movement of the low-flying Virginia rail. Environment Canada would have preferred that there be no fencing.”

Mayor Gary Korpan said the city consulted with all levels of government and required environmental organizations before proceeding with the trail, which is now part of the Trans Canada Trail system, and that no rules or legislation were broken.

“Our process was very complete. It included all required participation, including the public, and the end result was very balanced when considering the environment, cost-effectiveness and trail usage,” said Korpan.

Despite the city employing all the proper avenues, Rickwood argues the city thumbed its nose at guidelines designed to protect sensitive ecosystem inventory. He also said the original plan called for a 1.5-metre boardwalk, not asphalt.

Korpan said the area the marsh now occupies was once used as a practice area for military manoeuvres, including tanks and other heavy equipment.

Coun. Joy Cameron, who was chairwoman of the parks, recreation and culture commission at the time the trail was built, said environmentalists who have examined the trail are divided as to its effect on the ecosystem.

But Rickwood, who has spent years campaigning against the path, says his role as an environmental steward should have some clout when pointing out what he considers infractions against the environment.

He also worries recent changes to the Official City Plan will not prevent Nanaimo from further diminishing its ecological footprint.

Jean Crowder, NDP MP for Nanaimo-Cowichan, said the dispute raises several issues from both Rickwood and the city that need to be addressed by government.

“We’ve come to a no-man’s-land on this particular issue,” said Crowder. “The city has built a trail that doesn’t go against any regulations or legislation, but we have an environmental steward claiming this is not in the best interest of our environment, which, in today’s world, is very important.

“Some of the most important decisions we make revolve around these seemingly small issues, and it is necessary the guidelines we create keep pace with our knowledge of the environment.”

Crowder added that most municipalities are not adequately equipped to deal with the constant downloading of environmental issues from senior levels of government, and Ottawa needs to create new laws or regulations to make federal guidelines more effective.

In the case of the asphalt trail that connects Second and Third streets, Baird wrote “these guidelines are not supported by legislative or regulatory powers, and cannot be enforced unless a local government chooses to enact and follow by-law legislation based on the guidelines.”

As a result, said Crowder, government offices are left to point fingers at each other when a problem arises. With different environmental groups following their own guidelines, the environment itself takes a back seat to bureaucracy. Those who choose to be environmental stewards, she said, should have better access to more precise regulations.

“We cannot leave it to our local stewards to ensure environment imperatives are met by municipalities,” said Crowder.

Rickwood said he will continue to campaign against the trail until it is “removed from the fragile ecosystem,” and the Friends of the Cat Stream have already begun a restoration campaign for the area.”