A PARTY FOR PLANT A ROW
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A GATHERING OF FURRY CREATURES
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PAMPERING FOR BREAST CANCER
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FRIDAY
MARCH 9 2012
www.burnabynewsleader.com
SFU Clan couldn’t hold off the Oregon Ducks in Àeld lacrosse last weekend.
Teachers ‘encouraged’ by public response: BTA Wanda Chow wchow@burnabynewsleader.com
MARIO BARTEL/NEWSLEADER
A portion of Kinder Morgan pipeline where it crosses the Fraser River in South Burnaby.
Pipeline plan ‘sneaking under radar’ Twinning existing pipeline pushed yes to support the pipeline, then I realized it passed through my could be easier sell than backyard so now I want to vote no,” other proposals Wanda Chow wchow@burnabynewsleader.com
The woman on the other line was concerned. A Kamloops resident, she had called the of¿ce of BurnabyDouglas MP Kennedy Stewart after participating in a telephone survey he had commissioned to gauge support for a potential twinning of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline. She said, “When you phoned, I
said Stewart, the New Democrats’ associate critic of natural resources. It’s an anecdote that explains part of the concern over the proposal, for which Kinder Morgan has yet to of¿cially make an application to the National Energy Board (NEB). The Trans Mountain pipeline carries crude oil and ¿nished oil products and runs between Edmonton and Burnaby, with a branch line to re¿neries in northern Washington State. There’s little understanding of
what expanding the pipeline means, with some people thinking it’s just a matter of installing pumps to increase capacity, Stewart said. In actual fact, such a project would require excavating the right-of-way where the pipeline runs, with a construction safety zone of about 300 feet, “which is like a four-lane highway.” Stewart asked the NEB at hearings on the subject in Ottawa whether expropriation of additional land would be required. They replied that it’s “very rare,” he said, but most of the time in Canada, pipelines don’t run through densely populated urban
areas. But in Burnaby, the pipeline in the Forest Grove neighbourhood “passes within a few meters of co-ops in the area,” he said, noting that Kinder Morgan’s proposed twinned pipeline may not follow the same route as the existing one in some areas. The fact the pipeline is underground and has been there as long as most people can remember, is part of the issue: people simply aren’t aware it’s there and what the potential impacts are if it’s expanded. Please see ‘HUMAN ERROR’, A3
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Burnaby teachers were “encouraged” by the public response to its three-day job action this week, said Richard Storch, president of the Burnaby Teachers’ Association. Teachers walked out Monday to Wednesday, in response to the provincial government’s plan to legislate an end to any further job action. Since September, teachers have been refusing to do administrative duties, to meet with administration or produce report cards. While they were not allowed to form picket lines, teachers did carry signs and hand out information at their “leaÀet lines.” The spirits are very good on the lines, Storch said Wednesday, thankful the wet, windy weather of Monday morning didn’t continue. “The thing that’s really buoyed our members’ spirits has been the honking, the support from parents and the public, especially in certain schools there’s been lots of parents bringing hot chocolate and tea, baked goods and things, just similar to what happened in 2005.” Please see ‘WE ARE’, A4