I’m sure I’m not the only one struck by the irony that “A Waste of Farmland” billboard has gone up on Tsawwassen First Nation’s reserve.
The billboard is not questioning, however, how the giant Tsawwassen Mills shopping mall has just been built on more than 1,000 acres of adjacent farmland owned by the Tsawwassen band.
The billboard is instead questioning why the B.C. government is building its Site C dam on farmland in the far-away Peace River district.
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Artist’s early conception of Tsawwassen Mills shopping centre, as provided by developer Ivanhoe Cambridge.
The billboard, which is permitted on reserve land but not on municipal property, is sponsored by the Sierra Club of B.C. and the Peace Valley Environmental Association. Both receive support from aboriginals.
Tens of thousands of people each day pass the billboard near the ferry terminal in semi-rural Delta. Farmland in and around Metro Vancouver is considered more prime than agricultural land in the colder Peace River, which is about 1,300 kilometres north of Vancouver.
Tsawwassen Mills did not require the municipality of Delta’s approval. The project would not have been possible without a 2007 Tsawwassen First Nation Treaty with the B.C. government.
The deal with the B.C. Liberals and others added 1,072 acres of the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) to the Tsawwassen band’s land, on which the mall, one of Canada’s biggest, has been built.
The 180-story mall was constructed on Tsawwassen First Nations land by Ivanhoe Cambridge, a multi-national conglomerate based in Quebec. Members of the TFN expect the deal to be an economic boon for them.
It’s always interesting how ecological values are tested when money is involved.
RELATED: Tsawwassen Mills: A shining future or an abomination? By Pete McMartin
Tsawwassen aboriginals embrace 180-store mall
Tsawwassen Mills won’t accept aboriginal status cards
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Tsawwassen Mills mega-mall opened this month on aboriginal land in Delta.
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This billboard is about 100 metres from the new Tsawwassen Mills shopping complex.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Clik here to view.
