Friends of the UNB Woodlot - Presentation to the Public Safety & Environment Committee, City of Fredericton (Sept. 06, 2011)

Ban Shale Gas Development in the UNB Woodlot and all of Fredericton

September 06, 2011Friends of the UNB Woodlot

Presentation to Public Safety & Environment Committee,

City of Fredericton

My name is Mark D’Arcy and I am with the group Friends of the UNB Woodlot. We appreciate this opportunity to make a presentation to the Public Safety and Environment Committee.

We have been active on the University of New Brunswick Woodlot issue since 2007. The UNB Woodlot represents a microcosm of several key environmental issues facing our city and also has been a real litmus test of the environmental protection policies in our province.

Presentation Outline

1. Our commitment to preserve sensitive environments

2. Our drinking water is unprotected from shale gas development

3. Obligations to the public

4. Watershed-based source water protection

5. Recommendations

1. Commitment to Preserve:

Green Matters and City Munipical Plan

Fredericton strives to be a Green city...

City Hall has challenged Frederictonians to educate themselves & to be proactive:

“Do your research, educate yourself on the issues surrounding climate change, global warming, pollution, and sustainability” (Green Matters website)

The language in Fredericton’s Municipal Plan clearly states that environmentally signiKicant areas are to be protected and that land uses have minimal impacts on them. Fredericton City “Council shall endeavour to protect land within environmentally signi7icant areas through appropriate zoning mechanisms.”

And the language in the section of the Municipal Plan speciKic to the UNB Woodlot gives the following direction: to preserve these sensitive ecological areas; to select “land uses that support local and regional needs”; to “enhance community vitality and well-being”; and to “increase UNB’s pro7ile as an environmental steward and community leader”.

City of Fredericton Municipal Plan Technical Background Report (December 1989)

And certainly any action we take to protect our drinking water will also have the that “should be protected “Parks and woodland areas such as: Odell Park; UNB Woodlot; and Killarney Lake region. All of these environmentally sensitive areas, whether they are officially designated or not, should be protected and enhanced. This means that they should be recognized on the future land use plan and those that are not already zoned in an appropriate category which would offer protection should be zoned to ensure their protection.”

Flanagan, Frank (1989). Environment, Report No. 11. City of Fredericton Capital City Municipal Plan Technical Background Report. Prepared by Fiander- Good

Associates Ltd. for the City of Fredericton Planning & Development Department. December 1989, page xii)

City of Fredericton Municipal PlanEnvironmentally Significant Areas

(4) Council shall endeavor to protect and limit development in all environmentallysignificant areas, including:

(a) River and stream banks; (b) Areas with flooding risk; (c) Areas with significant development constraints; (d) Significant natural habitat; (e) Other areas of open space value; (f) Wetlands.

(5) Council shall endeavor to ensure that land uses within and abutting designatedopen spaces and other environmentally significant areas are compatible with andhave minimal impacts on the natural environment.

(6) Council shall endeavor to protect land within environmentally significant areas: (a) Through appropriate zoning mechanisms; (b) As a condition of approval for development agreements;

http://www.fredericton.ca/en/citygovernment/resources/Section2.11Environment.pdf

Guiding PrinciplesIt shall be the policy of Council to adopt guiding principles generally summarized as follows:(1) The UNB Woodlot contains sensitive ecological areas that should be preserved in perpetuity.

(2) Areas identified for potential development should be used for sustainable development that includes: (a) Careful identification of appropriate mixed land uses; (b) Best practices for waste management; (c) Best practices for storm water management; (d) Land uses that support local and regional needs;(e) Transit-supportive land use; (f) Emphasis on building design and site planning.

(3) Uses of the UNB Woodlot should serve to:(a) Enhance community vitality and well-being; (b) Generate long term revenues in support of the University’s mission; (c) Leverage additional forest land holdings for research, education and endowment purposes; (d) Increase UNB’s profile as an environmental steward and community leader; (e) Demonstrate UNB’s commitment to excellence in development and management.

City of Fredericton Municipal Plan

3.9 THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW BRUNSWICK WOODLOT

Here is a map of the UNB Woodlot in relation to the southside of Fredericton. The UNB Woodlot is a concentration of forested wetlands at the top of the hill behind the Hugh John Fleming Forestry Complex. At 3800 acres, it is equal in size to southside Fredericton and Lincoln in the valley below.

The reason that these wet forests are here is that the UNB Woodlot area represents very high groundwater levels, often just below the surface. This groundwater contributes to the recharge of both the Fredericton and New Maryland aquifers.

And the Department of Natural Resources map showing shale gas test drilling licenses speaks for itself. These licenses cover a 10-kilometre radius around Fredericton, and includes the UNB Woodlot and most other areas of the City of Fredericton and surrounding communities.

http://www.gnb.ca/0078/Promo/NaturalGas/ObtainingOilGasRights-e.asp

UNB Woodlot

Just think about what this map represents: ➡ “Exploration” licenses cover seismic testing, hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”), and production well testing;

➡ Well pads can be requested inside the city limits;

➡ Well pads can be located outside the city limits, and then drill horizontally up to 1 kilometre or more inside our municipal boundaries; and

➡ Even with drilling outside the city limits, industry & government studies show that hydraulic fracturing create fractures that can spread up to 2,500 feet underground, and can open up natural, pre-‐existing fractures in the bedrock.

2. Drinking Water is Unprotected from Shale Gas Dev’p:

Risks, Environmental Protection Policies, and Aquifer Mapping

The public in Fredericton and New Brunswick is becoming very well-‐informed on the dangers of shale gas development. And we know that the geology in New Brunswick is such that shale gas is found in very hard bedrock. This is similar to the situation found in Pennsylvannia, where hydraulic fracturing of the bedrock requires millions of gallons of water and toxic chemicals to be pumped into each well at pressures reaching 15, 000 psi – this is the equivalent of large bombs going off in our bedrock.

- whistleblower employees for US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)- New York Department of Environmental Protection(DEP)- New York Riverkeepers- Council of Canadians- Dr. Anthony Ingraffea (Cornell University) - a "father of hydraulic fracturing"- Propublica- Pembina Institute and The David Suzuki Foundation- Dr. Jannette Barth (former Chief Economist, New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority)

The public is well-informed about the environmental and economic costs of shale gas dev’p

And do we want to risk the migration of natural gas and fracking =luids into aquifers by the fracking of our bedrock?

Industry and government studies show that hydraulic fracturing create fractures that can spread up to 2,500 feet underground, and that hydraulic fracturing can also open up natural, pre-‐existing fractures in the bedrock.

Option [email protected]

WidenNatural

Fractures

Create New

Fractures

#1

#2

Early evaluation of the chemicals in fracking Kluids is cause for great concern. More than a third of the chemicals are associated with cancer, endocrine disruption, reproductive disorders, and genetic disruptions. And more than half of the chemicals are associated with immune suppression.

THIS REPRESENTS EFFECTS ON EVERY ORGAN SYSTEM IN THE HUMAN BODY. And this is only the small percentage of the chemicals that have been identiKied.

54 chemicals in fracking fluids:

- 33% are associated with cancer- 41% with endocrine disruption- 34% with reproductive disorders- 58% with immune suppression- 43% have been associated with genetic disruptions

And this is only the small percentage of the chemicals that have been identified.

(Dec. 2009, Department of Environmental Protection for New York City )

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/press_releases/09-15pr.shtml

The before and after wetlands prediction map used by the Department of Environment is also very troubling. Since March 16th of this year, more than half of our wetlands in New Brunswick are now completely unprotected from shale gas development. Wetland alteration permits and environmental impact assessments (EIAs) are no longer required for wetlands that do not appear on this present map.

March 16, 2011 -‐ “New” wetlands map and policy was introduced, effectively practicing that more than 60% of the wetlands in this Province do not exist, breaking the province's own regulations on wetlands protection. All wetlands not shown on the map can now be destroyed without a Watercourse and Wetland Alteration (WAWA) permit.

before March 16, 2011

after March 16, 2011

Systematic Dismantling of our Environmental

Protection Policies in N.B.

March 16, 2011 -‐ “New” wetlands map and policy was introduced, effectively practicing that more than 60% of the wetlands in this Province do not exist, breaking the province's own regulations on wetlands protection. All wetlands not shown on the map can now be destroyed without a Watercourse and Wetland Alteration (WAWA) permit.

March 16, 2011 -‐ Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) not triggered for development projects that involve wetlands (larger than two hectares in size) that no longer exist on the wetland map;




Protection Policies in N.B.

And we have just learned that as of July 13th of this year, the water classi=ication program has been shelved after a decade of work by 19 watershed groups around the province. This would have provided the regulatory framework for watershed protection here in New Brunswick.


Protection Policies in N.B.March 16, 2011 -‐ “New” wetlands map and policy was introduced, effectively practicing that more than 60% of the wetlands in this Province do not exist, breaking the province's own regulations on wetlands protection. All wetlands not shown on the map can now be destroyed without a Watercourse and Wetland Alteration (WAWA) permit.

March 16, 2011 -‐ Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) not triggered for development projects that involve wetlands (larger than two hectares in size) that no longer exist on the wetland map;

July 13, 2011 -‐ 19 watershed groups notiKied that their ongoing project work to develop a Water Classi=ication Program was dropped because the regulations would be too difKicult to enforce. This would have provided the framework for a watershed protection regulatory framework here in New Brunswick.



- removal of 100s millions of gallons of fresh water from our natural water cycle

- fracking will widen natural fractures and create new fractures in, and between, shallow and deep aquifers

- release of radioactive fracking sand and toxic fracking water into deep underground drilling wells

- weak wetland protection policies throughout the province of New Brunswick

- no province-wide, watershed-based source protection of our drinking water.

Current environmental policies and aquifer mapping can’t protect our drinking water from shale gas dev’p:

3. Obligations to the Public:

Public health and safety

- duty to protect citizens from unnecessary & easily avoidable health risks

- duty to protect waterways, groundwater from contamination

- duty to preserve & restore forested wetlands to protect our properties from climate change

Fundamental obligations to protect public health and safety

And on the last point, I want to stress the fact that the value of sensitive ecological areas like the UNB Woodlot can not be replaced.

Forested Wetlands: Insurance in the face of

climate change....

- They act as giant sponges. 1 acre of wetland can hold 1.0-1.5 million gallons of floodwater = tremendous rainfall capture and storage capacity.

- At present, 20% of our municipal taxes go to stormwater and sewer infrastructure here in the City of Fredericton.

- The 21st-century Best Management Practices (BMPs) for stormwater and urban drainage is to keep the rainwater where it falls and allow it to drain away slowly.

- Our governments have an obligation not to pay for inferior solutions when nature provides a priceless solution for free.

Urban forested wetlands are well worth preserving:

Local climate models by Environment Canada highlight the future climate change that is now coming upon us here in New Brunswick.

It is important to understand that storms like Hurricane Irene, and the December 2010 rains that caused the catastrophic Klooding in Charlotte County, are not caused by climate change but are made more intense by climate change. This is due to the warmer ocean temperatures, and the 4-‐5% more water vapour we now have in our atmosphere.

Climate Models for Fredericton & New Brunswick:

- predict major changes this century: +++severe rain events with climate change

- a 30% increase in winter precipitation- more winter runoff (2X)- significant increase in freeze-thaw cycles (in winter)- lower summer/fall runoff (1/2)- 3.1 to 5.9 *C increase in mean winter temperature - 2.4 to 5.1 *C increase in mean spring temperature

From: Environment Canada

Rain-saturated soil provided the perfect conditions for the great spring flood of 1973 in New Brunswick.

And this is the reality of a huge rain event. It is unimaginable how much rain can fall in these severe storms.

Where will this rain water go without these intact natural forests and wetlands?

A Severe Rain Event of 8 inches:

Amount to fall just on the UNB Woodlot (3800 acres)= ca. 860,000,000 gallons

= fills 1,562 Olympic swimming pools

or= enough water to cover 1 square mile to a height of 1.3

metres (ca. 50 inches)or

= 13 inches of new snow melts down to 1 inch of water. So the equivalent of 8 inches of rain is a snowstorm of

2.64 metres (8.67 feet)

Why should taxpayers be forced to pay much more for pipes and retention ponds that will fail anyway in severe rain events?

In order to make our cities more resilient, we must protect forested wetlands and large buffer zones around our watercourses. These key catchment areas for rainwater take on a very signiKicant role in buffering the volume and speed of stormwater runoff over our cities.

4. Watershed-based source water protection:

The protection of our drinking water based on watershed boundaries, not municipal boundaries.

A watershed is a geographic area where surface water from rain and snowmelt, streams, and rivers flow into a common body of water. A portion of this surface water seeps into the ground and enters the groundwater system.

Larch Swale is an example of one of the headwaters of a watershed in the UNB Woodlot.

Ducks Unlimited Larch Swalein

UNB Woodlot, Fredericton

The 3800 acres of forested wetlands in the UNB Woodlot comprise 4 major catchment areas for rainwater (Corbett Brook, Phyllis Creek, Garden Creek, and Baker Brook watersheds), and is equal to the size of the south side of Fredericton and Lincoln in the valley below.

We can’t afford to alter more of our watersheds. Because several streams have been piped underground on the southside Fredericton hill, rain water rushing down Smythe Street is now a de facto part of our stormwater infrastructure.

From: James Bornemann & FAWA

Corbett Brook

Baker BrookPhyllis Creek

Garden Creek

Source water protection should be trying to understand the groundwater Klow system. This would require 3 major monitoring programs:

(1) De=ine the aquifers, including both shallow and deep aquifers.

Right now our mapping is incomplete. Any systematic program would need to ACCESS, MAP, and MONITOR these aquifers.

(2) Characterize the interaction between groundwater and surface water.

We need active, monitored stream gauges that show what happen at the surface. This is because the water Klowing over the surface has a direct effect on how near-‐surface and deeper aquifers recharge over time.

(3) and model long-term effects.

Unfortunately in New Brunswick we do not have aquifer mapping that shows the extent of our aquifers. In a municipality like Fredericton, we know the smaller 25-‐year recharge area that is deKined as the WellKield Protection Area. For most aquifers in this province, there is no mapping data.

Watershed-based source water protection includes the protection of lakes, streams, rivers, and groundwater. This holistic approach also involves the protection of sensitive lands such as wetlands, flood plains, and valley lands.

The goal is to achieve a multi-barrier approach to the protection of drinking water, so source water protection is combined with the protection of water distribution systems, and water/wastewater treatment plants.

This was implemented in the Province of Ontario after the Walkerton tragedy. There are 36 conservation authorities in the Province of Ontario that are organized according to watershed boundaries, not municipal boundaries. All other parties work with the conservation authority to produce locally developed watershed-based source protection plans.

The Province of Ontario recommended that a high priority be placed on the participation of First Nations in source protection planning. When the local plans are developed and approved by the community, they must be respected by the Province.

What is watershed-based source water protection?

Watershed-based source water protection was put in place in Ontario in response to the Walkerton tragedy.

While not perfect, Ontario has certainly increased their mapping and monitoring of drinking water sources.

Water Guardians Network, August 2009

How can you safely allow exploration testing and drilling to take place if you don’t have accurate aquifer/ground water mapping? The Province of New Brunswick is a long way off from having baseline data on our drinking water sources. Until we have a fundamental working knowledge of the extent of our aquifers, and our groundwater Klow system, we should have a ban on shale gas development.

It would be negligent to allow huge withdrawals of water, together with hydraulic fracturing of our underground geology, without this information.

5. Recommendations:

Shale Gas Dev’p Ban in the UNB Woodlot and City; Resolution to UMNB and Province;

Source Water Protection.

- uphold the environmental protection goals in the Municipal Plan - underline the critical importance of the Green Matters campaign

- protect citizens from unnecessary & easily avoidable risk

City councillors have a golden opportunity to:

Recommendations:

To move this forward and allow our group to make a presentation and ask City Council:

(1) to ban high-impact industrial land use, including shale gas development, from the Fredericton city limits;

Cities in New Brunswick have the power to regulate their own zoning by-law. Each city have their own unique land use controls, which makes sense when you consider that cities actually look different from one another. The Province of New Brunswick does not take a cookie-cutter approach to controlling land use. My own house is in a residential block zoned 'TP-3A', a zone unique to Fredericton and not found elsewhere in New Brunswick.

Fredericton updated its own Municipal Plan in 2007 and this plan was approved by the Province. Under the Community Planning Act, our city has the autonomy to make their plan work using various land use instruments. In addition to the Zoning By-law, Fredericton has control over its subdivision by-law, building by-law, deferred widening by-law, & controlled access street by-law.

Recommendations:



(2) to adopt resolution asking the Union of the Municipalities of New Brunswick (UMNB), and the Provincial Government, to ban shale gas development from the province; and

Recommendations:



(3) to adopt resolution asking the Provincial Government to implement watershed-based source protection for our drinking water throughout the province.

(2) to adopt resolution asking the Union of the Municipalities of New Brunswick (UMNB), and the Provincial Government, to ban shale gas development from the province; and

And certainly any action we take to protect our drinking water will also have the added advantage of making our cities more resilient against climate change.

I would ask that our group be allowed to make a presentation to City Council at their next meeting. This is an important issue that needs to be brought forward for their consideration.

Vermont - 7 inches of rain

(IRENE, August 2011)

North Carolina - 15 inches of rain

Magaguadavic Lake, NB - 6+ inches of rain

(December 2010)

Friends of the UNB Woodlotunbwoodlot.org

Brochures & Form Letters:

http://www.slideshare.net/friendsoftheunbwoodlot(or simply Google ‘slideshare’ ‘unb woodlot’)

Contact Information:

E-mail: [email protected]

Facebook: "I don't want the UNB woodlot turned into Big-Box Strip Malls"

YouTube: search for "UNB Woodlot"

Website: www.smartgrowthUNB.ca

Website maintained by Fredericton Chapter of Conservation Council: www.unbwoodlot.org

Education

Friends of the UNB Woodlot - Presentation to the Public Safety & Environment Committee, City of Fredericton (Sept. 06, 2011)