The FVRD Citizens Association is asking the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) to … “respect the trust your citizens bestowed you to carry out your democratic responsibilities in good faith.”
The request is made in an offivcial submission to the Aggregate Pilot Project & Bylaw 1181 in a letter from Walter Neufeld dated November 17.
FVRD Citizens Association
Submission to
FVRD re Aggregate Pilot Project & Bylaw 1181
vs
FVRD Communities Best Interests
2014 November 17
Mme Chair;
I am writing today on behalf of the FVRD Citizens Association (FCA) and on
behalf of all FVRD citizens who are negatively affected by the outdated policies
which current drive Conflict Gravel permitting & practices in and around FVRD
communities.
I write to advise the FVRD that FCA categorically Objects & Rejects the FVRD’s
proposed Gravel Operations Bylaw #1181 which is substantively based on the
“Aggregate Pilot Project’s” (APP) fundamentally flawed analysis/findings.
The APP was developed in secret by the Minster of Sate for Mining working in
collusion with the aggregate industry & FVRD Directors who were disallowed to
inform or include their constituents’ best interests.
As a result of those corruptions of due process, the APP’s final draft reflected the
aggregate industry’s agenda at the expense of adversely affected communities.
The resultant Three Zone Colour Coding was likewise hijacked by aggregate
industry interests while meaningful community input was disallowed and/or
junked.
The FVRD’s mishandling of the APP process has demonstrated a disturbing
political trend whereby our nations democratic underpinnings are being
undermined for the benefit of powerful special interest groups, which have
colluded with, and corrupted, our elected representatives. Municipal and regional
government are the closest Canadians ever get to representative government but
the FVRD has abdicated its duty & betrayed its constituencies trust.
The FCA rejects the FVRD’s current Gravel Operations Bylaw #1181 for the
reasons outlined above and for all the reasons made plain by the thousands of
letters citizens sent to the FVRD (please review your archives).
Social License is withheld from the Gravel Operations Bylaw #1181 & the flawed
APP that it is based on. Both are illegitimate documents for the reasons outlined
above and they will be treated as such by your constituency.
FCA understands the importance of gravel to modern society and for that reason
took the time to produce an alternative to the APP.
FCA undertook an initiative to draft the Aggregate Supply Program – ASP as a
basis for discussion of a viable win-win-win alternative to the flawed win-lose
APP, and the sham process in which we are now engaged (Community-centric
alternative to the draft Aggregate Pilot Project, D R A F T # 1 0, December 12,
2010.”)
FCA is still prepared to provide one or two representative of its member
organizations to quietly work out with governments and industry a win-win-win
protocol to benefit residents, governments and the aggregate industry.
The inevitable result of continued refusal to include true representatives of
aggrieved residents is increased anger and direct action. Representing a fake “due
process” as the real thing is an affront to constituents and undermines democracy.
Your citizens’ wait on the FVRD to respect the trust your citizens bestowed you to
carry out your democratic responsibilities in good faith.
I request that the FVRD include this Submission of Objection verbatim as FCA’s
formal submission to the FVRD regarding Bylaw 1181 and the APP, rather than
placing a summary on the record. Please confirm.
Submitted with all due respect,
Walter Neufeld, President
FVRD Citizens Association
604-308-5530
“An association of associations working together for the common good”