Less that Two weeks remain in comment period related to Coast Tsimshian Enterprises quarry planning

A land use map identifies the
site of a potential rock quarry
along the Ridley Island Access Rd.

A plan to develop a rock quarry on Crown land on the south side of Kaien Island is getting its first overview from the provincial government, with a comment period on the application from Cost Tsimshian Enterprises and Terus Construction  set to end on May 11th.

The site in question is along the Ridley Island Access Road and is directly north of the industrial terminals located on Ridley Island.

In the project description the proposed quarry development and the use of the rock from it as part of the Container port expansion plans is outlined as follows:

Coast Tsimshian Enterprises Limited (CTE) is applying for a 2 year Temporary Licence - Industrial/Mineral Production on Kaien Island near Prince Rupert. 

The purpose for this temporary licence is to investigate and complete the necessary assessments, which could lead to future technical engineering designs and/or environmental assessments for a rock quarrying operation. 

The proposed site, if found to be acceptable, could be developed to produce ~200,000 tonnes of rock material per year. The quarried rock would mainly be utilized for the (future) expansion of the container port in Prince Rupert.

The management plan notes that the City of Prince Rupert currently has no local zoning in place for the land, which is also under consideration for disbursement to the local indigenous people. 

The plan also notes of the potential for archaeological sites in the area under consideration.

The City of Prince Rupert currently has zoning and a long-range land use plan for the area. The zoning was enacted under Bylaw 3286/2009, which was last updated in December 2014. In regards to (crown) land definition this site is currently under a Section 17 - Designated Use Area with a tenure purpose of industrial. 

If the quarrying operation moves forward, then its proposed end use meets the definition. It should be noted that this area of proposed investigation is currently being looked at for disbursement to the local indigenous people. There is no known local government zoning for this particular area, however the City of Prince Rupert in the past, has allowed for development of quarries within this area. 

CTE is aware that archaeological sites could be located within the TL area of interest, therefore it is expected that an Archaeological Overview Assessment (AOA) and a Preliminary Field Assessment will be completed as part of the consideration of this application.

The full scope of the application and management plan can be explored here.

Anyone wishing to make a comment related to the application can use the form included in the link above.

Further notes on the Coast Tsimshian can be found from our Metlakatla and Lax Kw'alaams archives, while port related themes can be explored here.