Time is running out for the Squamish Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) to spend more than $200,000 in federal stimulus funding through the Trans Canada Trail Foundation.
The federal government granted the SLRD the infrastructure funding last year to help complete the Sea to Sky Trail between Squamish and Whistler, and it has to be spent by March 31, 2011.
Final work on the trail from Whistler to Brandywine Falls was completed this summer and now the focus has moved to Cheakamus Canyon and the section between Chance Creek Bridge and Pinecrest Estates.
On Monday (Aug. 23), the SLRD board voted unanimously to award Dream Wizards Events Ltd. the contract to complete the section from Pinecrest Estates to Chance Creek Bridge for $60,134.
Coastal Mountain Excavations Ltd. was awarded the contract to complete the Upper and Mid Cheakamus Canyon section for $171,790.
The Sea to Sky Trail's completion was the key goal in SLRD's trail work plan for 2010.
Once these sections are complete, only a 20-metre section of new trail will remain unfinished.
MoE's responsibilities questioned
The Ministry of Environment (MoE) responded to SLRD vice-chair and Electoral C area director Susan Gimse's concerns over downloading of flood-mitigation responsibilities onto local governments.
The MoE outlined municipal and provincial responsibilities before addressing Gimse's concerns about floods on the Birkenhead River in June and July due to a logjam.
"The BC Government shares emergency management responsibilities with local governments, First Nations and the federal government. These agencies work together with provincial ministries to save live, protect property and the economy, and preserve the environment," states the letter.
"The first response to emergencies and disasters is, by law, the responsibility of local governments, municipalities and regional districts."
The province reimburses local governments, municipalities and districts 100 per cent of the costs incurred during an emergency response and 80 per cent of costs incurred during the recovery stage.
However, the Birkenhead logjam was a recovery operation, so 20 per cent of the cost went to local governments. The SLRD shared the 20 per cent cost with Lil'wat Nation and Pemberton Valley Diking District.
Pemberton mayor Jordan Sturdy wasn't aware the SLRD had consented to spending the 20 per cent.
"How can they presume that local governments will cover these costs without consent, or without even notifying us?" he said.
SLRD chief administrative officer Paul Edgington said the SLRD did consent to sharing the cost with the other two organizations.
SLRD vice-chair and Electoral C Area Director Susan Gimse said she felt the expectations placed on regional districts, particularly the SLRD, was beyond their resources. She mentioned the Meager Creek landslide as an example.
"Our electoral areas are so huge with so many natural hazards that the responsibility of a board to take care of that vast area doesn't seem feasible," she said.
D'Arcy can't take it anymore
Gimse alerted the board over challenges faced by residents of the small community of D'Arcy.
The small community near Pemberton is on the very popular Anderson Lake, and residents say they've been inundated with visitors parking vehicles in inappropriate areas before launching their boats.
"The residents are just beside themselves," said Gimse. "There's no parking but with so many recreational vehicles they're blocking driveways up and down the road."
Since the province has been pushing advertising proclaiming Anderson Lake as a prime destination without regard for lacking amenities, it's up to the government to take action, she said.
"We don't want to discourage use but it's a safety issue and has created a huge problem for the residents there."
Heliski staging area approved
Coast Range Heliskiing will continue to offer backcountry adventures for another two years from their temporary site at Poll Creek while awaiting approval for a new location, as SLRD board directors approved the extension Monday.
The company has had use of the heliski staging from December to April for six years. Meanwhile, the company has been pursuing a permanent site for a staging area along the Birkenhead Forest Service Road.
SLRD staff, two proponents from Coast Range Heliskiing and eight members of the public attended a public hearing about whether to renew the company's temporary use permit after a hiatus during the Olympics caused by security requirements.
While the public is not overly supportive of the heliski operations, they weren't opposed to temporary use, according to an SLRD report. None of the residents wanted the temporary use to become a permanent use, but they it would be tolerated for another season.
Some concerns raised included noise, fuel hazard, vehicle parking, and liability and insurance.
Asked why the airport wasn't a sufficient staging area, the proponent said the operation's efficiency depended on more than one take-off point.
Coast Range Heliskiing is working on securing a permanent location 2.2 kilometres up the Birkenhead Forest Service Road and in February 2008 the SLRD zoning amendment bylaw was adopted to allow for a permanent heliski staging area.
A Ministry of Environment policy change in April 2008 prevented Coast Range from cutting down second growth trees for the staging area and therefore the area cannot be used until further notice.
