SAANICH & LANGFORD, BC / Unceded territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples
Tonight, the District of Saanich and City of Langford Councils voted unanimously in favour of BC municipalities pushing the BC government to enshrine its recently-released Coastal Marine Strategy into law. The resolutions were brought by Saanich Councillor Teale Phelps Bondaroff and Langford Councillor Mary Wagner.
BC coastal and marine areas face a myriad of threats, from marine plastics to derelict vessels, shoreline development, ship traffic and climate change. Local governments are often on the front lines of these challenges.
The Coastal Marine Strategy was co-developed with coastal First Nations to address these important issues, and it includes both existing and new policies and projects. It aims to protect and restore coastal ecosystems; assess and manage cumulative impacts; promote sustainable blue economies; and support the implementation of marine plans to ensure the most sustainable use of coastal regions.
"Healthy coastal ecosystems are essential to the prosperity of our communities and the sustainability of our industries,” said Councillor Phelps Bondaroff. "Coastal communities, like Saanich, understand better than anyone the need for long-term solutions. By supporting this call to enshrine the Coastal Marine Strategy into law, we are ensuring their voices, livelihoods, and environments are protected for future generations."
Erin Gray, Saanich resident and Staff Lawyer with West Coast Environmental Law, said: “Enshrining the Coastal Marine Strategy into law is the critical next step to ensure that it is resistant to the winds of political change and is able to fulfil its 20-year vision. Strong laws are critical to long-lasting environmental protection.”
“Having lived most of my life on Vancouver Island, I have seen first-hand the impact of degraded shorelines, salmon declines and contaminated shellfish. We all have a responsibility to be good stewards of our oceans and ensure the health of coastal communities now and into the future,” said Councillor Wagner. “By taking the next step with a legislative framework to implement the Coastal Marine Strategy, we can make the investment already made by the Province really count.”
With the passing of these resolutions in Saanich and Langford, the municipalities are now seeking to raise the issue with other local governments across the province, bringing resolutions in support of a strong BC coastal law to the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities in April, and following that, to the Union of BC Municipalities in September.
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For more information, please contact:
Erin Gray (she/her), Staff Lawyer, West Coast Environmental Law
egray@wcel.org, 604-684-7378 ext. 234
Teale Phelps Bondaroff (he/him), Ph.D., Councillor, District of Saanich
teale.phelps.bondaroff@saanich.ca, 250-882-6261
*Teale est disponible pour des interviews en français
Mary Wagner (she/her), Ph.D., Councillor, City of Langford
mwagner@langford.ca, 250-634-2398
Additional information:
Saanich resolution: https://saanichca.primegov.com/Portal/viewer?id=0&type=7&uid=d30708db-7dc4-4b5f-ba3f-44c1eb3518ba
Langford resolution (agenda item 11.2): https://pub-langford.escribemeetings.com/FileStream.ashx?DocumentId=12864