Multiple conservation groups are calling for action to stop gravel mining in Norrish Creek near Mission.
Ecojustice Canada has sent two letters to the Canadian Minister of Fisheries and the B.C. Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship on behalf of Watershed Watch Salmon Society, BC Wildlife Federation, and the Norrish Creek Gravel Stewardship Group.
The letters demand urgent action to halt and investigate unauthorized and harmful gravel mining at Norrish Creek — known to locals as Suicide Creek.
According to a news release, the creek is a critical salmon-bearing tributary of the Fraser River. However, the groups say gravel extraction by Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) since at least 2022 has caused extensive environmental damage.
Per the letter, the gravel extraction has led to the destruction of salmonid populations and their habitat, with the Norrish Creek Gravel Stewardship Group observing up to eight groundwater salmon spawning streams that have been partially or completely dewatered.
“These activities have dewatered streams, destroyed spawning habitat, and drastically altered groundwater levels vital to the survival of wild chum and coho salmon,” the news release reads.
Tributaries of Norrish Creek also support thousands of spawning salmon, including Worth, Inch, Hawkins, Railroad, and Chilqua creeks. Meanwhile, the aquifer supplies cool, oxygen-rich groundwater that sustains streams in dry conditions, per the release.
“Since CPKC expanded its gravel operations, numerous streams have dried up, fertilized salmon eggs have perished, and wetland ecosystems have dewatered. This is particularly concerning because over 80 per cent of wetlands in the Lower Fraser have already been paved over for industrial development or diked to create farmland and housing, rendering what remains to be of critical importance to a range of wildlife, including salmon, waterfowl, and amphibians.”
The letters ask the DFO to rescind a 2021 Letter of Advice to CPKC, issue a stop-work order under the Fisheries Act, require CPKC to obtain a formal Fisheries Act authorization for any future works, and conduct a full investigation into the impacts.
They also ask for the province to require full remediation of the impacted watershed, commission an independent hydrological study of the Norrish Creek aquifer, suspend any permits for mining or gravel extraction in the watershed pending public consultation, and consider penalties and stop-work orders under the Water Sustainability Act.
In 2021, DFO reviewed a request from CPKC to remove gravel annually from the Norrish Creek channel. DFO permitted CPKC to remove gravel upstream and downstream of their rail bridge from 2021 to 2026, annually between August 1 and September 15, during the least-risk period for salmonids.
"DFO is responsible for ensuring compliance with the Fisheries Act and Species at Risk Act to avoid death of fish or the harmful alteration, disruption or destruction of fish habitat," DFO said in January.
However, the letter argues that the gravel extraction has far exceeded the required amount.
“The scale and geographic footprint of excavations between 2022-2024 far exceeded what has been undertaken in previous years and what would be reasonably required for bridge maintenance. The NCGSG have also observed sediment from adjacent gravel processing activities being released into waterways near the mining locations,” the letter to the province reads.
In December, Worth Creek dried up and left hundreds of spawned-out salmon carcasses on the ground. Jack Emberly suspected gravel extraction by CPKC at Norrish Creek lowered the water levels in the nearby Worth Creek and Railroad Creek.
In a statement to the Mission Record in January, CPKC said a railway has an obligation under the Railway Safety Act to maintain proper drainage under its bridges, which the Fisheries Act recognizes.
“We regularly perform work to protect the safety of railway bridges and the rail operations on those structures. During the summer of 2024, accumulated gravel, known as bedload, upstream and downstream of the CPKC bridge crossing over Norrish Creek was removed to maintain proper drainage and water flow under the bridge. We are not aware of any connection between the gravel removal in Norrish Creek last summer and the dry creek bed reported in December,” CPKC said at the time.
