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Celebrating 60 years of service: Surrey RCMP
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Wednesday April 27, 2011 Serving Surrey and North Delta www.surreyleader.com
Protesters occupy part of South Fraser Perimeter Road route Spring celebrations
Road opponents camp out
At left, Olivia Moniz, 8, looks for sweet targets before launching time at the Eco Easter Egg Hunt at the Surrey Nature Centre on Saturday, which attracted more than 1,000 participants. Meanwhile, children from Khalsa School (below) ride on a float at Surrey’s Vaisakhi parade, which drew recordbreaking crowds of about 150,000 people to the Newton area on Saturday. The local parade is the largest outside India.
by Jeff Nagel ABOUT 25 PROTESTERS camped out over the Easter weekend on a section of the planned South Fraser Perimeter Road and some were vowing to stay longer to disrupt construction of the contentious truck freeway they condemn as climate crime. The makeshift camp – with tents, tarps, a teepee, fire and a kitchen – went up on Earth Day (Friday), as protesters planted seedlings in the path of road-building crews in North Delta’s Annieville neighbourhood. “We’re being put at risk of asthma, cancer – if you’re pregnant your baby will have a lower IQ – because of the diesel particulate fallout,” said North Delta resident Richelle Giberson, one of the protesters. “We’re being put at risk to get stuff to Wal-Mart.” Giberson said the perimeter road goal is to help triple cargo flow through the port, which she said will lead to more local air pollution – in part because the freeway won’t be free-flowing but will be initially built with some intersections and stop lights. “We’re going to have triple the amount of trucks sitting idling at intersections.” The protest encampment is being coorEric Doherty dinated by activists from multiple groups under the banner of stopthepave.org. “I have no plans to leave,” said Surrey resident Tom Jaugelis, one of the organizers camped there. “At this time, I’m staying here indefinitely.” Organizer Eric Doherty said an extended occupation is possible and protesters will decide among themselves each day whether it makes sense to continue. Doherty said he believes direct action coupled with a court challenge launched by the Burns Bog Conservation Society can still stop construction of the $1.2-billion perimeter road,
BOAZ JOSEPH PHOTOS / THE LEADER
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