BX sediment pond grounded

Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: August 13, 2009 6:00 PM

An avalanche of opposition has left plans for a sedimentation pond on BX Creek high and dry.The North Okanagan Regional District board unanimously voted Wednesday not to allow the City of Vernon to construct a sedimentation pond at BX Ranch Park to remove debris and prevent flooding. “It’s quite obvious that the public is not happy about using the park,” said Mike Macnabb, BX-Silver Star director. “We haven’t explored other areas. It’s a park and leave it as a park.” The city’s plan called for removing debris and sediment from BX Creek to further protect against flooding by enhancing the creek bed structure and the adjacent riparian areas.

Key to the proposal was a sedimentation pond on one-acre of land in the park on BX Road. However, the prospect of such a facility drew anger during a public input session Wednesday.“BX Ranch Park is a high-use area,” said Sandy Budgen, with the BX-Swan Lake Community Association. “A sedimentation pond does not conform to the original intent. We would support looking at other sites that don’t chop up the park.” Resident Belinda Stewart insisted that the park is vital for recreational activities because it is too dangerous to walk along many narrow BX roads.

“This park is not an industrial site,” she said.Resident Belinda Stewart insisted that the park is vital for recreational activities because it is too dangerous to walk along many narrow BX roads.Resident Randy Schellenberg asked why there hadn’t been public involvement until now.“The park is priceless and the land is being given away,” he said.

Macnabb suggested that the plans for the pond had evolved from a wetland to something he couldn’t accept.

“It wasn’t anything as initially presented to the board,” he said.

That view, though, upset Wayne Lippert, a Vernon director.“This is a process that did go through on a vote (at the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee),” he said.“Staff did follow the process and if any director had wanted input from the public before this, it could have been asked for. I don’t like the inference that staff did anything untoward.”