Has Metro Vancouver been misleading the public about its plans to build incinerators?

Some Fraser Valley politicians and a Western Canada Wilderness Committee rep are asking that very question.

Metro’s waste management chair Marvin Hunt has been “aggressively” promoting waste-based incineration, and is set to speak at an industry conference on the topic in Ontario next month, said Patricia Ross, chair of the Fraser Valley Regional District.

That’s in stark contrast to the position of complete objectivity claimed by Hunt several times during last month’s regional forums in the Fraser Valley, she said.

“Our purpose here is not to advocate, but to give out the information we were ordered to find,” Hunt told the crowd last month at the waste forum in Chilliwack, as reported in the Progress. “We’re not here to promote anything.”

The pamphlet advertising the industry event says Hunt will be addressing Metro Vancouver’s plan to build six new incinerators and how it dealt with public opinion, as if the final decision were already made.

Ross said she finds it in “poor taste.”

“Especially in advance of a decision being made by the board. It doesn’t say Metro Vancouver is considering building six incinerators, it says they are planning to.”

A WCWC rep agreed, and called it a “glaring contradiction.”

“The chairperson of our region’s Waste Management Committee is saying one thing here in Vancouver, and something else to people in Ontario when it comes to their position on proposed waste incineration facilities,” said Ben West, Healthy Communities Campaigner with the Western Canada Wilderness Committee.

“To the people of Vancouver, he contends that he has no pro-incineration bias, and that the process will consider all public opinion on whether to allow the burning of garbage in Metro Vancouver.

“On the other hand, he is going to Ontario, to advise other jurisdictions how to handle the negative PR that surrounds these types of facilities as if Vancouver was a done deal,” said West.

There’s “hard science” to show why people should be concerned about the toxins emanating from the incineration process, he said.

Chilliwack Mayor Sharon Gaetz said it was difficult for her when she read the pamphlet promoting the conference that was being circulated.

“The hardest part for me, is these are colleagues that we work with all the time. We don’t want to alienate them. But it’s very difficult when they say they are keeping an open mind, but every piece of literature we read seems to indicate otherwise.”

What is also causing consternation was the consultation process to date, with an expert panel with ties to the incineration industry, and a toxicologist that once defended the tobacco industry.

“In our opinion, the residents of the Fraser Valley were not consulted in a meaningful way,” Gaetz said.

Ross agreed.

“This is just the latest in a series of disappointments and frustrations with their consultation process,” Ross said. “When people point out some apparent bias, we’ve always been told they haven’t yet made the decision which option to choose and that their participation in public meetings could make a difference. Yet clearly, it doesn’t appear to be the case.

“The negative impact will be significant if this goes forward. The residents of our regions deserve better.”

Gaetz said the optimistic part of her is looking forward to another opportunity for residents to offer feedback on Metro’s plan some time this month.

jfeinberg@theprogress.com