http://www.vancouversun.com/index.html
The Coal Association of Canada has released a special report on the industry’s economic impact in British Columbia as the battle heats up over coal exports from Port Metro Vancouver.
Arguing that coal is a catalyst for economic development, trade and employment, coal association president Ann Marie Hann said economics has been missed in the discussion over coal exports.
Opponents of Vancouver’s growing role as a coal exporting centre cite coal’s high greenhouse gas emissions and the health risks from increased coal dust along transportation routes as reasons for shelving expansion plans.
Port Metro Vancouver has already approved one expansion at Neptune Bulk Terminals in North Vancouver, and is considering a new coal terminal at Fraser Surrey Docks in Surrey. Metro Vancouver is now North America’s largest coal exporting port.
“Clearly this is a response to the ‘coal export controversy’ now raging in Metro Vancouver,” Kevin Washbrook, of the citizens group Voters Taking Action On Climate Change, said of the industry report. He said the industry is attempting to build an argument in response to concerns about the environmental threat posed by coal.