A proposal to allow ATVs limited access to the 108 Greenbelt ran into stiff resistance at a public consultation meeting last week.
Around 200 people attended the consultation, hosted at the 108 Community Centre on April 17, to hear the proposal of the 108 ATV Club and ATV B.C. They included members of the public, birders, environmental groups and representatives of pipeline and energy company Enbridge.
During the presentation, Mark Redl, president of the 108 ATV Club, outlined proposed changes to the bylaws governing access to the Greenbelt. Under the current bylaws access by motor vehicles of all kinds is prohibited to protect the mix of forest, grasslands and wetlands as well as prevent wildfires
“I’m trying to help the businesses in this town survive and prosper and whatever else by bringing ATV tourism,” said Redl, the president of the 108 ATV club.
The club envisions the construction of two corridors through the Greenbelt that would connect to the Gold Rush Snowmobile Trail (GRST) - which runs between Clinton and Likely, BC. The GRST has also been seen as a vital link for tourism in the Cariboo region.
The two corridors would run from the West Beach parking lot to the 108 Resort, located next to the pipeline, while the other would go from the emergency exit towards Tatton Station Road straight through the Greenbelt, which includes Walker Valley, an area to the west of 108 Mile Ranch.
Many who came to the meeting were adamantly opposed to the proposal.
Paul Foth, a 108 Mile Ranch birder, spoke for the birds when voicing his opposition. Foth brought up a list of endangered bird species as classified by the BC government who live in or around the Greenbelt to illustrate the damage ATVs could cause to their habitats.
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“Bird populations are particularly prone to disturbances by motorized vehicles, and especially some of the proposed right-of-way, they’re close to some sensitive habitat, especially number two, that goes through the grasslands,” Foth said.
Meanwhile, Kelly Griffith, a land and community advisor for Enbridge, stated that ATVs on the right of way of the pipeline would contravene regulations set out by the Canadian Energy Regulator (CER). These regulations prohibit any motorized vehicles from driving near the pipeline unless permission is given by the company.
“Enbridges stance would be to disallow this,” Griffith noted.
John Blinston, president of ATV BC, said that they are willing to negotiate a solution that takes into account the concerns raised by those groups.
“We would certainly want comments and direction from the other groups so we could have or potentially can have access to avoid sensitive areas,” Blinston said.
Redl said that compromise has to go both ways. He expressed frustration that those voicing concerns were not willing to negotiate. While he acknowledged ATVs can and do have an impact on the environment, he pointed out that so do many other activities and practices.
”You saw (at the meeting) that they weren’t willing to listen, they weren’t willing to adjust - they wanted what they wanted,” Redl said.
Al Richmond, the director for Area G of the Cariboo Regional District (CRD) that covers the 108 Mile Ranch, chaired the meeting. He said he got around 65 submissions from members of the public expressing their views.
“I was surprised at the letters I got from the birding community from the province - who come here because of Walker Valley.”
Richmond says that the next steps will be to submit all of the notes to the commission, who will look through and decide if a change in the by-law is needed. If so, there will be another public meeting.
Redl is not optimistic that the bylaws will be changed, based on the response at this meeting.