Gabriola Island Local Trust Committee Chair Writes - Proposed Regional Growth Strategy Amendment to Nanaimo Airport Lands

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Bowen  Denman  Hornby  Gabriola  Galiano  Gambier  Lasqueti  Mayne  North Pender  Salt Spring  Saturna  South Pender  Thetis 
 
 
700 North Road, Gabriola Island, BC  V0R 1X3 
Telephone  250-247-2063    Fax  250-247-7514 
Toll Free via Enquiry BC in Vancouver 604.660.2421  Elsewhere in BC 1.800.663.7867 
Email  northinfo@islandstrust.bc.ca 
Web  www.islandstrust.bc.ca 
 
May 20, 2021 File No:  3070-50 
 x-file:  5595-10 
 
Via email: tyler.brown@nanaimo.ca 
 
Tyler Brown, Board Chair 
Regional District of Nanaimo 
6300 Hammond Bay Road, 
Nanaimo, BC, V9T 6N2 
 
Re: Proposed Regional Growth Strategy Amendment to Nanaimo Airport Lands 
 
Dear Chair Brown,  
 
I am the Chair of the Gabriola Local Trust Committee and write you in that capacity.   Thank you for your 
letter  of  March  24,  2021  providing  the  Gabriola Island Local  Trust  Committee  (LTC) an  opportunity to 
comment on the proposed Regional District of Nanaimo Regional Growth Strategy Amendment Bylaw No. 
1615.04,  2020  (RGS  Bylaw)  as it relates to the LTC’s responsibilities for the Gabriola Island Local Trust 
Area.  It should be noted that in addition to Gabriola, the Gabriola Island Local Trust Area incorporates 19 
other smaller islands, including Mudge and DeCourcy Islands. 
 
The  LTC  reviewed  the  RGS  Bylaw  and  previous  LTC  correspondence  related  to  the  operation  of  the 
Nanaimo Airport at its May 13, 2021 meeting. 
 
The LTC has concerns about the RGS Bylaw.  These concerns relate to the long-term objective underlying 
the RGS Bylaw.  The long-term objective of the Nanaimo Airport Commission is laid out in the Nanaimo 
Airport Master Plan.  This Plan, prepared by SNC Lavalin Report in 2014, is incorporated as Schedule ‘C’ of 
Electoral Area ‘A’ OCP Bylaw No. 1620, 2011 and is attached to this letter.  The objective of the Nanaimo 
Airport  Commission  is  the expansion of the  airport  to  accommodate  increased  air  traffic,  including  the 
capacity to handle larger aircraft.  
 
Increased air traffic, especially by larger aircraft, flying over or near the Gabriola Island Local Trust Area 
has the potential to cause increased noise disruption for local residents.  An increase in the number of 
flights may also prove a challenge to have flight paths that do not include aircraft flying near or over the 
Gabriola Island Local Trust Area. 
 
The concern about noise  is not a new issue.  Attached for your consideration is a copy of a 2015 letter 
sent by the LTC to the Nanaimo Airport Commission raising concerns at that time about the time of flights 
and the level of noise from aircraft.  As noted in the  prior LTC  correspondence, “Due to the quiet rural 
nature of our community, the disruption created by aircraft noise is felt significantly more than it would 
in an urban area.”  The Islands Trust’s is committed to the preservation and protection of the Islands Trust 
Areas’ unique amenities, and the quiet rural nature of our communities is one such form of

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