Massive resort crosses protected Wildlife Habitat Area needed for species recovery

VANCOUVER / UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh AND səlilwətaɬ TERRITORIES — Cheam First Nation and Wilderness Committee are calling on Water, Lands and Resources Minister Nathan Cullen and the B.C. government to clearly enforce the designation of a provincial Wildlife Habitat Area (WHA) as off-limits to all industrial development, including the proposed Bridal Veil Mountain Ski Resort.

The spotted owl — the most endangered bird species in Canada — is continually threatened due to ongoing logging of its forest habitat. The Bridal Veil Mountain Ski Resort proposal includes the construction of two gondola runs right through the middle of WHA 2-501 Elk Creek near Chilliwack.

“It’s outrageous the B.C. government and the minister responsible for recovering the near-extinct spotted owl population have so far remained silent about the Bridal Veil Mountain Ski Resort proposal,” said Wilderness Committee’s Protected Areas Campaigner Joe Foy. “From the get go, they should have said there is no way this ski resort can ever move forward — and absolutely not in a wildlife habitat area. They need to speak up now loud and clear.”

Cheam First Nation called for the establishment of the WHA in this region well over a decade ago and is opposed to this project destroying this protected spotted owl habitat. Further, for many years, the Cheam First Nation has been waiting for approval of their smaller, more sustainable gondola project — the Cascade Skyline Gondola — which avoids cutting through the WHA.

“Our Nation’s long-running efforts in the early 2000s resulted in the establishment of this WHA to protect the spotted owl. We’re opposed to the Bridal Veil Mountain Ski Resort destroying what we achieved,” said Cheam First Nation member Ernie Victor. “We have clearly communicated with the B.C. government that the Cascade Skyline Gondola proposal is a sustainable option for these lands and expect them to do the right thing and support moving this project forward.”

The Wilderness Committee and Cheam First Nation are both calling on the B.C. government, responsible for spotted owl critical habitat conservation in the province, to break their silence immediately and openly declare the Bridal Veil Mountain Ski Resort will never be allowed to go ahead in the spotted owl Wildlife Habitat Area.  

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For more information contact:

Joe Foy | Protected Areas Campaigner, Wilderness Committee
604-880-2580, joe@wildernesscommittee.org

Ernie Victor | Special Projects Lead, Cheam Enterprises Inc., Cheam First Nation
604-991-9849, ernie.victor@cheamenterprises.ca