It will hurt salmon habitat and has to be stopped.
That's what top environmentalists, including David Suzuki, are saying about a gravel-mining operation on British Columbia's Fraser River -- and now they're calling on the federal Auditor General to investigate.
The mining operation, which is located near Agassiz, was approved in February by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, despite widespread concerns it would disturb fish and wildlife.
A petition filed by several British Columbia organizations to Auditor General Sheila Fraser argues the removal of 400-thousand cubic metres of gravel from Spring Bar, near Agassiz, "will disrupt the river ecosystem and negatively affect fish and fish habitat."
The petitioners are asking for a review of the Fisheries Act authorizations that allowed the mine to proceed in February.
But it is not clear whether the concerns outlined in the petition will be addressed.
The operation is being heavily supported by the B.C. government, which provided $564,000 from the provincial flood mitigation budget to build a temporary access bridge to Spring Bar.
The petition alleges that, contrary to statements by DFO and provincial officials, the removal of gravel will not reduce the flood threat on the Fraser and will cause extensive damage to salmon habitat.
"We believe that the DFO has been deliberately obstructionist in regards to the transparency of its decisions . . . and has failed to meet the intent of Canadian fisheries and environmental law in respect to Fraser River gravel removal,'' Frank Kwak, acting chairman of the Fraser River Ad Hoc Stewardship Gravel Removal Committee, said in a letter to Ms. Fraser that accompanied the petition.
Kwak said salmon stocks have fallen to dangerously low levels on the West Coast, and one reason is the failure of government to protect fish habitat.
