Opponents of barging coal to Texada Island are hoping the courts will block the plan.
Voters Taking Action on Climate Change says it filed papers Monday asking a judge to throw out a permit giving an existing coal facility on the Island the OK to increase capacity.
It’s part of a wider plan to move US coal through the Lower Mainland to Asia. The coal would be barged to Texada and transferred to bigger ships. Port Metro Vancouver still has to approve the plan at its end.
VTACC’s Kevin Washbrook says they have no idea how long the court process might take, but he also says they have a little more time than previously thought. That’s because Port Metro Vancouver isn’t expected to make its decision for at least a month.
Washbrook adds, though, that a big announcement in the US is making their cause more urgent. The Obama administration wants to force coal-fired power plants to reduce emissions by 30 per cent from 2005 levels.
Washbrook says they’re expecting opponents of the coal plan to have a large contingent at Tuesday’s Port Metro Vancouver AGM.
