Province gains land, remediation help in deal with developer
Wyng Chow
Sun
The provincial government has gained ownership of 3,845 hectares of land and mineral rights at Britannia Beach at no cost after entering into a public-private partnership with prominent Vancouver developer Rob Macdonald.
Macdonald, who donated all but 202 hectares of the 4,047-hectare (10,000-acre) property to Victoria, plans to redevelop about 162 hectares, contributing some of his profits toward the massive ongoing environmental remediation work required at the site of the historic Britannia Beach Mine.
Cleanup costs for the property, located 52 kilometres north of Vancouver on the Sea-To-Sky Highway, have been estimated at up to $70 million. The site was once known as North America‘s largest single source of metal contamination.
Stan Hagen, B.C.’s minister of sustainable resource management, said remediation of the pollution problem will be “the bedrock” for the renaissance and revitalization of Britannia Beach.
“The big-picture benefits are significant,” Hagen said. “The [3,845 hectares] that have been acquired at no cost to the province of B.C., along with other contributions from Macdonald, means that we will be able to complete the land remediation work, [leading] ultimately to a healing of the Britannia environment.
“The acquisition of fee simple title of the Britannia land by the province will create positive ripple effects now and into the future. For example, the rights of ways are absolutely essential in the building of highways, which will increase tourism and other Sea-To-Sky activity.”
Eventually, the government’s proposed realignment of Highway 99 will go right over part of the Britannia property. Victoria would also entertain other redevelopment proposals to turn the area into a major tourist destination.
On Aug. 18, Macdonald’s numbered company, 400091 British Columbia Ltd., was granted an order by B.C. Supreme Court Justice John Sigurdson, awarding the firm ownership of the Britannia lands.
The court had pronounced an order of foreclosure on the private property after the former owners, Copper Beach Estates Ltd., defaulted on a first mortgage held by Macdonald, who was owed more than $17 million.
Excluding mineral rights, the 4,047 hectares of land had an appraised value of $10.2 million.
While signing over title to most of the property to the B.C. government — the deal closed Tuesday — Macdonald indicated he intends to redevelop about 162 hectares, probably for residential uses.
His proposal would also include retention of the existing community of Britannia Beach, as well as commercial development along the Sea-To-Sky Highway, on the road to Whistler, the major site for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Macdonald will turn over an unspecified percentage of all development income to Victoria for maintenance and operation of the province’s environmental plan for the area.
“We’re honoured to be a part of the rebuilding of the Britannia Beach Mine site,” said Macdonald, president of his privately-held Vancouver-based company, Macdonald Development Corp.
“To create a successful community, a healthy foundation, literally environmental remediation, it is here you have to start.
“When you add the location, the view (of Howe Sound), the historic aspects of various buildings that we’ll save and incorporate, and a mining-themed commercial centre, it makes for a very interesting project.”
The Britannia Mine was once the largest copper mine in the British Empire. During its operations by various pioneers and mining companies between 1904 and its closure in the mid-1970s, it produced some 50 million tons of ore, including copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver.
However, the mining activity also left a legacy of serious water pollution as a result of acid rock drainage, killing fish in Howe Sound. In late 2000, several remnant companies of the original mine operators agreed in an out-of-court settlement to provide $30 million toward site remediation.
Meanwhile, the B.C. government is also asking the federal government to contribute, since Ottawa operated the mine during the two world wars under a federal Crown corporation.
Environmentalists have applauded the remediation efforts that started several years ago, including installation of an earth plug to seal a crucial mine opening to prevent Britannia Creek — once dubbed B.C.’s most endangered river — and the surface waters of Howe Sound from being contaminated.
Since the plug was installed by University of B.C. engineers, metal levels in the creek waters have reportedly dropped to insignificant levels, while aquatic life is returning to lower reaches of the stream.
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