February's post is somewhat tardy, but it is still in the works. It's a great piece about Belize and how one man from Vancouver put the tiny Caribbean nation of Belize on the track to effective Real Property Assessment. Exciting stuff indeed! Before that however, I wanted to discuss the recently reported proposed LNG Plant at Western Forest Products' former Woodfibre mill.
A prominent feature in Howe Sound, the former Woodfibre mill sits on a 200+ acre waterfront site just west of Squamish. The mill is easily visible from the Sea-to-Sky highway, occupying this location for over 100 years (well before the highway was built). Owned by Western Forest Products, the former pulp mill was an integral part of the Squamish community and economy with over 750 employees at its peak operation back in the 50's. Like many operations of its kind, the mill property was its own town with housing, recreational facilities, and the like. It was so big, the mill had its own version of a small BC Ferry to service it, the MV Garibaldi II.
Unfortunately pulp mills have not done so well over the last 20 years. Increasing production overseas, higher local costs, and much needed capital requirements and upgrades (these are old facilities remember) have forced a lot of these facilities to close. WFP closed Woodfibre in 2006.
Catalyst Paper's Elk Falls mill in Campbell River was finally closed in 2009/2010 after experiencing a number of production level changes over the years. Opened in 1952, this property sits on 400 acres and is one of the reasons Campbell River exists (Forestry did indeed build most of the communities on the coast). Although there have been success stories like Nanaimo's Harmac mill which was purchased out of financial distress by an employee group a few years ago, most of these large industrial properties are lying vacant and are in some sort of limbo waiting to be reborn. These are large (100 acre plus) sites that are typically located in regions where industrial demand is considerably more limited than we have here in Vancouver. Absorption of these properties is only really feasible with one or two large industrial users. Anyone who comes along and tells you they have a master plan for these sites (like Harold Jahn), is fooling themselves and everyone else who listens. These properties need a similar use to the one that preceded them.
Liquefied Natural Gas is one of these uses and the Woodfibre mill is one of these sites. A former industrial property that lay vacant and will now be reborn. And reborn clean. Part of the deal between WFP and the new purchaser is that the site must be delivered with a clean environmental status. Remediation is currently being undertaken, a task that is very welcome news to anyone.
If an LNG facility is built at Woodfibre, the major benefit is that Squamish is going to gain an incredible amount of jobs for its community. A community that seems to be developing more and more into a bedroom community of Vancouver for people escaping the high housing costs here. Of course, not everyone will share this sentiment.
There are at least a dozen planned LNG facilities in BC. This is a natural resource that, unlike trees, you can't really add value to. As far as I know, there really isn't much in the way of secondary processing that can take place to create, say a 2x4, versus exporting the raw log, with respect to natural gas. Natural gas is natural gas. Furthermore, an LNG plant is a far cleaner option for the site than a pulp mill, particularly if it is using technology from 1954.
New industrial developments are being built with technology and processes that give much more consideration to the environment than ever before. Furthermore, an LNG plant in Canada will be that much better for the planet than any comparable facility built outside of the western world, in a country such as Indonesia, China etc.
Woodfibre will likely always be known as Woodfibre. As far as industrial development, economic revitalization and this former industrial site's environmental condition are concerned, an LNG plant at this location is good news as it breathes new life into Squamish, facilitates the remediation of a former industrial use property, and bring with it jobs and opportunity. On the global environmental side, natural gas is a far better energy alternative to most other fossil fuels. Even with the production of LNG and its transportation to Asian markets, there is a net reduction in emissions as it reduces the use of coal for energy production. While greenhouse gas production is greenhouse gas production, less greenhouse gas production is, in my opinion, a benefit.
Some links regarding the WFP sale:
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