Community Articles (listed by posting date)
Additional Articles · 21st May 2026
Marion Cragg Bennet
TOMORROW, May 22nd at midnight is the deadline to submit formal objections and feedback to the Province regarding the plan for expansion of the Cortes Island Quarry- Mine File #1610452
Send emails to SouthwestMinesDivisiongov.bc.ca and include the file number in the email subject. Provide your full name, contact info and area of residence.
Here is the letter that I submitted:
To whom it may concern,
My name is Marion Cragg Bennet
Address, 545 Siereen Road
Cortes Island, B.C. V0P 1K0
I moved to Cortes Island 50 years ago. I’ve raised my 3 children and 2 of my grandchildren here. This island is a very special and fragile place.
I’m very concerned about the scale of this proposal in relation to the infrastructure strain and environmental impact on this small island.
The current quarry has been sufficient for the island’s needs for many years. To increase the extraction by 5 to 15 times is excessive and unacceptable. To turn a 4500 tonne/year quarry into a 60,000 tonne/year will create an industrial operation. Enough gravel to build 500 homes a year will be created. It will obviously be shipped off island.
When I heard that the trucks hauling this gravel will cost 1 million dollars each it raised a big red flag for me.
First of all, where will the fuel tanks be kept? What precautions for fire safety will be taken? Will our firefighters have easy access to the site? Where is the water source?
The heavy use of our road system will be extreme, affecting our tourism business, which is the biggest employer on the island. Cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists will be severely impacted. The road damage will affect our highway’s crew and overburden our ability to sustain safe conditions. The noise from 1400 to 4000 13 ton truckloads per year will heavily impact “the enjoyment of our rural lifestyle” as stated in our Official Community Plan”. Our roads here are very narrow, there’s no yellow line down the middle and there’s no shoulder on quite a few stretches.
If the truckloads are barged off the island it would impact the many shellfish farms in the Gorge Harbour. It would also impact the Gorge Harbour Marina Resort. If the truckloads are ferried off the island it would impact the locals and tourists leaving and returning to the island.
The use of herbicides could leach into the water table. There would need to be a wetland buffer zone to protect the 3 streams near the quarry. Where will the contaminated water from the gravel washing be dumped? There needs to be a water audit and hydrology study with professional assessments of watersheds, wetlands, water tables and fish populations.
The noise of blasting this granite area will be heard for miles around. Where this is situated is at the center of the island and will affect the over 1,000 people living here.
Sincerely,
Marion Cragg Bennet
Send emails to SouthwestMinesDivisiongov.bc.ca and include the file number in the email subject. Provide your full name, contact info and area of residence.
Here is the letter that I submitted:
To whom it may concern,
My name is Marion Cragg Bennet
Address, 545 Siereen Road
Cortes Island, B.C. V0P 1K0
I moved to Cortes Island 50 years ago. I’ve raised my 3 children and 2 of my grandchildren here. This island is a very special and fragile place.
I’m very concerned about the scale of this proposal in relation to the infrastructure strain and environmental impact on this small island.
The current quarry has been sufficient for the island’s needs for many years. To increase the extraction by 5 to 15 times is excessive and unacceptable. To turn a 4500 tonne/year quarry into a 60,000 tonne/year will create an industrial operation. Enough gravel to build 500 homes a year will be created. It will obviously be shipped off island.
When I heard that the trucks hauling this gravel will cost 1 million dollars each it raised a big red flag for me.
First of all, where will the fuel tanks be kept? What precautions for fire safety will be taken? Will our firefighters have easy access to the site? Where is the water source?
The heavy use of our road system will be extreme, affecting our tourism business, which is the biggest employer on the island. Cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists will be severely impacted. The road damage will affect our highway’s crew and overburden our ability to sustain safe conditions. The noise from 1400 to 4000 13 ton truckloads per year will heavily impact “the enjoyment of our rural lifestyle” as stated in our Official Community Plan”. Our roads here are very narrow, there’s no yellow line down the middle and there’s no shoulder on quite a few stretches.
If the truckloads are barged off the island it would impact the many shellfish farms in the Gorge Harbour. It would also impact the Gorge Harbour Marina Resort. If the truckloads are ferried off the island it would impact the locals and tourists leaving and returning to the island.
The use of herbicides could leach into the water table. There would need to be a wetland buffer zone to protect the 3 streams near the quarry. Where will the contaminated water from the gravel washing be dumped? There needs to be a water audit and hydrology study with professional assessments of watersheds, wetlands, water tables and fish populations.
The noise of blasting this granite area will be heard for miles around. Where this is situated is at the center of the island and will affect the over 1,000 people living here.
Sincerely,
Marion Cragg Bennet