Terrace city council is urging the provincial government to look into the health implications of natural gas production, after concerns were raised by a local physician regarding air quality and patient health in northwestern B.C.
At its Apr 27 meeting, Terrace city council passed a motion recommending an independent cumulative health impact assessment be done in relation to the province’s gas industry.
This was after Marie-Lyne Bourassa, a doctor from Terrace, wrote a letter to Terrace city council voicing her concerns over flaring emissions from the LNG Canada site in Kitimat and the impact it has on people dealing with health issues.
According to Bourassa, flaring emissions contain health-harming pollutants, which are not always regularly tracked.
“We share an airshed with the community where LNG Canada has been flaring 40 times more gas than its permits allow,” she wrote. “Flaring releases a toxic mix of air pollutants that can harm health after even brief exposures.”
The other point she made was that some healthcare providers in northern B.C. have reported an increase in cases of asthma and heart disease in patients, which could be associated with poor air quality.
Council’s discussion reflected both concern and caution.
Some councillors agreed that it would be fair to investigate the possible impacts of industrial activities on the health of residents in Terrace and its neighboring communities.
They explained that there has been a consistent industrial activity in the area, including LNG projects, and suggested that it would be important to learn about cumulative impacts in the future.
Other councillors did not believe that there was enough evidence to support the proposal to ask the province to conduct a comprehensive health impact assessment of the proposed LNG projects.
“My concern is… we’re going from concern to action without acquiring the data to support the ask,” said councillor James Cordeiro.
Council also heard that air quality data does exist through long-term monitoring in the Kitimat airshed, which includes emissions from multiple industrial sources.
Mayor Sean Bujtas said he shares concerns about air quality, adding that Terrace residents are affected by the same airshed as Kitimat, despite not receiving the same level of industrial tax revenue
“We have this airshed that we’re a part of, and LNG Canada boasted the cleanest LNG facility in the world,” he said. “I don’t really think we’re there today.”
In the end, council decided that asking for additional information from the province was justified, despite the current information being inconclusive.
In the motion, the province is urged to conduct a health impact study in light of proposals that the project could affect northwest B.C., among others.
Another suggestion was made that air quality data would help strengthen the request when sending out the message to the province.
Bourassa felt the urgency in the matter because of the provincial and federal government’s plan to expand the LNG sector in British Columbia without conducting a health impact study.
