Dear Editor
In the June 5 Burnaby Now, Michael Davies of Kinder Morgan says that “There’s nothing more important than the safety of our neighbours…”.
Kinder Morgan’s proposal is to triple the amount of flammable toxic material directly above our neighbourhoods and an elementary school. The storage terminal is not “located at the base of Burnaby Mountain”, as Mr. Davies says; instead, it is on the slope of the mountain itself, uphill from residential neighbourhoods.
Mr. Davies refers to the lack of a fire incident in the first 60 years of the storage terminal as if it predicts future events. It does not. We have not had a large earthquake in the last 60 years, but may have one at any time. The safety of the existing tank farm has simply not been tested.
According to our Deputy Fire Chief’s report, the new tanks proposed are so large, and their proposed configuration so close together, that a fire could not effectively be fought. According to a recent report by international petroleum safety expert Dr. Ivan Vince of the U.K., not only would this expansion NOT be approved if it was proposed in the U.K. or the EU, but the existing tank farm would not be permitted to be built today in its current location. The report also criticizes Kinder Morgan’s emphasis on risk mitigation strategies.
Because Kinder Morgan stands to profit from the expansion, their statements are potentially biased, and should not be automatically taken at face value.
Evidence from independent experts who have nothing to gain is far more credible than potentially biased statements made by Kinder Morgan. And saying the expansion is safe, in TV and print advertisements and statements to the media, does not make it true.
I believe that Kinder Morgan is downplaying the real danger to our community.
I urge all residents of Burnaby to read our Deputy Fire Chief’s report (tinyurl.com/KMFireReport) and Dr. Vince’s report (tinyurl.com/KMVinceReport), and decide for yourselves.
Angela Brooks-Wilson, PhD, Burnaby resident and Simon Fraser University professor
