Members of the Tsawwassen First Nation have voted against the proposal to build an LNG export facility on Tsawwassen lands in partnership with FortisBC, putting to rest any future discussion of the plan.
The vote on the project, which was proposed last month but was subject to member approval, was close; 74 members or 53% opposed it, while 65 members, or 46%, were in favour.
“With today’s vote, TFN Members have made the decision that the proposed LNG concept on Tsawwassen Lands is not one they support, and therefore we will not be pursuing it any further,” said Chief Bryce Williams on behalf of the TFN executive council
“It was clear to me that our community educated itself and made a well informed choice.”
The proposed facility would have been located at Roberts Bank and would have produced three to five million tonnes of LNG per year, requiring five or six LNG carriers per month. It would have created 1,000 construction jobs and 50-100 permanent positions, the TFN said in an earlier news release. At 32 hectares, or 80 acres, it would have been about one-quarter the size of Petronas’ proposed Pacific Northwest LNG plant in Prince Rupert.
Members also voted in favour of TFN executive council negotiating leases of up to 50 years on 180 acres of industrial land that was designated under the TFN Land Use Plan in 2008.
- With files from Nelson Bennett
