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press release

Vancouver Fraser Port Authority axes permit for Fraser-Surrey coal facility, Ecojustice reacts

February 1, 2019

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority has cancelled a permit for the Fraser Surrey Docks coal project, a proposed facility that would have seen millions of tonnes of American coal transferred by rail through British Columbia’s Lower Mainland. Ecojustice lawyer Fraser Thomson issued the following statement in response to the news:

“This is a win for the climate and a testament to what can be achieved when community members stand up and say no to dirty U.S. coal.

“With the permit cancelled, it is hard to see how the Fraser Surrey Docks coal project could ever end up being built.

“This is the latest blow to a controversial project that has faced opposition every step of the way.  The sustained and courageous opposition from local community members and groups — including the two local residents and Communities and Coal, which Ecojustice represented in their legal challenge to the project — played a critical role in forcing the Port to axe the permit for this project.

“Coal has been linked to serious health effects and is one of the dirtiest fossil fuels on the planet. Burning coal for electricity has no place is a world serious about fighting climate change and leaving a livable planet for our children.”

Ecojustice lawyers represented Communities and Coal Society and two local residents in their fight against the Fraser Surrey Docks coal project in court in November 2018. A decision in that case is pending.

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Ecojustice, Canada’s largest environmental law charity, goes to court and uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment for all.

*Update: An earlier version of this statement incorrectly identified the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. This has been amended.