16 June 2006
Residents Come Out to Oppose CPR Siding
Crowsnest Pass Alberta - Sitting at home and
complaining about an issue doesn't achieve anything. Which is exactly why Crowsnest Conservation Program Manager, Melissa Brown, decided
to hold a public meeting last week to address residents on the CPR siding.
Along with recent articles in the media regarding the siding issue, petitions and letters to federal ministers were also available for
residents to sign at the meeting at the Lions' Pride Hall last Thursday.
Councillor Gary Taje attended the meeting to answer residents' questions, and talk to the crowd about what their options are to voice
their opinions on the proposed siding.
He estimates about 80 people were at the meeting, either just coming to sign the petition, or to stay for the presentations.
Councillor Taje says he hopes the petitions and letters will show CPR it's not just Council who is opposed to the siding, which is
proposed for the south side of the tracks between Blairmore and Coleman.
"Of course if residents of the Pass show they're supportive of Council's direction, it makes the political process easier because
it shows that Council is following the residents concerns," he said. "This still is a political process, so we believe we can
have an impact on the siding location by following the political process."
Brown says she decided to hold the meeting to provide a place for everyone to discuss the issue. "If that location was the only
place it could go, we'd have to live with it, but that's not the case," said Brown, adding she'd like to see it moved somewhere
outside the Pass where it is not immediately adjacent to any wetlands. "If a significant portion of the population says they don't
want it within the town, I really hope CPR will respect our wishes."
The majority of comments Councillor Taje said he heard at the meeting were regarding the personal safety of residents, the safety of
their homes, longer waits at railway crossings, and environmental concerns.
Ideally, said Councillor Taje, he'd like to see the siding either go through the Frank Slide or out by Sentinel, although he admits
steep grades through the slide would make that option difficult.
Coleman resident, Steve Liska, said he is furious with the way CPR is planning the siding.
"Why does CPR have to have it there in the first place? Of all the places in the world they could put it, why between Blairmore
and Coleman?" said Liska. "If they put it there, and something happens (and the railway crossing is blocked), I have to go
further west to go east. Who do they think they are? Jesus Christ? Well, they're not."
CPR spokesman, Ed Greenberg, says no one from CPR attended the meeting, because they didn't think they were invited.
He says the location of the proposed siding is the most appropriate location for safety and environmental stewardship.
"We have tried to be flexible and encompass the community's input and we've been able to, in some aspects. We're trying to strike
the right balance with who we deal with as customers, and the concerns from residents," said Greenberg. "(CPR) is federally
regulated and under the step-by-step regulation processes in place, we go beyond what's in place to get input from the
community."
Greenberg wouldn't say whether or not the petitions would have an affect on CPR's decision. "We have more discussions left, but
we're already changed the project... and tried to adjust the project regarding the input heard from resident (in the past)," he
said.
"We've reviewed every possible location in the area and in terms of dealing with safety and environmental stewardship, this
location meets the criteria. It's certainly our intention to go forward with the project that fits for everybody - the community and
our company."
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