On May 30, 2012, the proponent released an environmental assessment Addendum in which they present their new proposal as “Alternative 1A”.
The proponent has never referred to an “Alternative 1A” before this, yet the proponent’s “Consultation Record” in this Addendum repeatedly refers to their public communications – since 2008 – using the term “Alternative 1A”, as if they’ve been telling us about their new proposal for years.
The proponent is doing this to attempt to trick the Ministry of the Environment into believing there has already been public consultation on the proponent’s new proposal – the proponent is doing this in the hope the Ministry of the Environment will accept their Addendum instead of restarting the environmental assessment process as should be required for a new proposal.
Meaningful public consultation is a crucial and fundamental part of the environmental assessment process, and for the proponent to unilaterally and retroactively rewrite the public record to suit their own purposes shows the proponent’s arrogance and contempt for both the public and the process.
We have therefore sent this letter to Ministry of the Environment.