Fisheries society won’t support developer’s plan

The Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C. cannot support the proposed Banks Crescent development until specified conditions are met to ensure the continued safe operation of the Summerland fish hatchery. The society operates the province-wide resource which produces up to one million trout released annually into 300 lakes.

Following multiple meetings with the developer, hatchery manager Kyle Girgan informed municipal officials of the society’s decision in a Jan. 16 email.

Girgan’s email was posted on the municipal website late last week following a request from the public made at the Summerland council meeting of Jan. 23.

The potential impacts on the hatchery and slope stability are the primary on-going concerns raised about the development by Summerland residents.

In recognition of the importance of the fish hatchery, council passed a resolution on Jan. 23 that this issue be resolved before addressing the many other outstanding questions.

Council also directed staff to meet with representatives from the developers, the Lark Group, and the FFSBC.

At press time, a meeting date had not been set, although both parties had been contacted.

In his email, Girgan wrote the society’s opinion is that “the most effective and appropriate approach for all application-related communication, including interactions between a stakeholder and the project proponents, is through district staff.”

All communications to council and staff are available to the public.

The FFSBC’s support of the project rests squarely on, among other conditions, the identification of a contingency water source.

The source must be accessible and capable of providing water of suitable quality and quantity required to maintain uninterrupted operations at the hatchery.

“Unless we can come up with a contingency water source all of this is window dressing,” Girgan said Friday, referring to the numerous suggested ways of avoiding, monitoring and responding to potential threats.

The hatchery’s sole source of water is a spring, Shaughnessy Spring, an outlet from an artesian aquifer under the development.

The proposed 380 unit seniors’ complex, consisting of five six-storey buildings over three levels of underground parking, would be located a short distance uphill from the hatchery.

Banks Crescent project could harm safe operation of Summerland fish hatchery

The use of water from Okanagan Lake as a contingency source would entail significant infrastructure and capital expenditures in order to bring the water to an acceptable standard, Girgan explained.

A host of chemicals and other contaminants, including biological agents such as fish pathogens would have to be removed to meet the hatchery’s stringent requirements.

The society’s other demands include the identification and quantification of spring water quality parameters and thresholds as related to fish habitat.

The proponents must also commit to continuously monitoring the quality of water from both the spring and aquifer to determine the cause(s) of any water quality variations during construction.

Regarding suggestions to date on how to address turbidity of water supplying the hatchery, Girgan said, “If we notice some change in the spring, it’s too late.”

Girgan is quick to say that the hatchery is only one of several stakeholders in the proposed development.

The others include all Summerland residents, especially those living near the development sites, who might be affected by sloughing of the slopes, and local businesses.

Girgan concludes his email saying it is the opinion of the FFSBC that “.... determination of related spring and aquifer water quality parameters and thresholds, and provision of a contingency water supply are solely the responsibility of the project proponents, and are subject to both the stakeholders’ and decision makers’ (council) input and approval.”