Martin Davis

Chair, Conservation Committee

British Columbia Speleological Federation
Box 8124, Stn. Central P.O.
Victoria, BC V8W 3R8

Telephone 250-478-6891 Fax 250-478-2206 Email: iskar@pacificcoast.net

Hon. Michael Farnworth
Ministry of Employment and Investment
Ministers Office
Room 123, Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

September 30, 1998

Re: Granting of quarry permit beside sensitive Chilliwack Caves

Dear Mr. Farnworth:

I am writing in regard to the granting of a quarrying permit in a knoll containing sensitive caves near Chilliwack. On September 2, 1998, Allan Ludwig, your district manager in Nanaimo, issued a permit to take a "test sample" (10,000 tonnes) of limestone from a hill beside the Chilliwack River. This location has been long known as the site of Chipmunk Caves, a chain of small entrances with known historical use by bats. This site has been proposed for habitat restoration by Bat Conservation International. More recently, the Iron Curtain Cave was discovered here. This limestone solution cave has an underground stream, is rich in delicate speleothems and is one of the most beautifully decorated caves in Canada. It is also the most significant cave known in the lower mainland region. Its importance can only increase in the years to come. The BC Speleological Federation (the umbrella organization for cavers in BC) has worked closely with the Ministry of Forests and representatives from the American National Speleological Society to manage this cave to conserve its rare formations. To that end, two gates were installed on the cave to protect its contents from vandals, as has happened at Chipmunk Caves.

Unfortunately, the granting of this quarrying permit may undo our efforts. Mr. Ludwig has sent assurances that the blasts will be restricted in strength and a seismograph will be placed to monitor this, although I assume it will not be placed deep in the cave where the delicate formations exist. I question this assurance; it only takes one excessive blast to undo thousands of years of speleothem growth and cause irreversible damage. As an example, witness the damage done to homes on Millstream Road in Victoria last year when blasting for the Island Highway went awry, despite assurances to the
contrary. In the case of the Chilliwack quarry, the permittee has exhibited poor judgement already.

When he first found the cave gate, he damaged it while trying to break in with a sledgehammer. On Monday, September 28, he or a co-worker threatened a caver and his daughter when they were visiting the area and claimed there were "no caves" there. They also claim that we have no right to visit the area. This is clearly false. At this point, we fear the worst for this site.

These are our main concerns:

1. A unique and rare site such as this demands a thorough environmental assessment.
Why has this not taken place?

2. The many delicate formations will probably break from the shock waves created by the adjacent blasts.

3. There are many loose boulders within the roof of the cave which could be destabilized, creating severe hazards to visitors to the cave.

4. There may be more undiscovered caves within the blasting site; Iron Curtain itself was discovered relatively recently, and this knoll shows extensive karst development (solutional features that indicate caves underneath).

5. The test sampling is a large volume in itself, far beyond what a mere sample constitutes. It may well lead to an application for extended quarrying of the hillside.

6. Any bats using the caves in the area will be subject to disturbance and possible extirpation due to the blasting and associated pollution.

7. Blasting in well-developed karst such as this may lead to contamination of karst groundwaters which discharge directly into the adjacent Chilliwack River, a major salmon stream. The many cracks and fissures that permeate karstified
limestone provide conduits for blasting residues to rapidly migrate directly into cave streams and springs with little or no attenuation. This may also apply to air-borne contaminants travelling through the myriad crevices in the limestone.

It should be pointed out that there are many sources of limestone in this area without extensive known cave development that could be used as alternate locations. We question whether a small-scale yet destructive commercial exploitation such
as this outweighs the environmental values of this unique and non-renewable cave site.

Countless people have visited this area for generations and it is a de facto recreation site. We implore you to personally look into this situation and rescind this permit before the damage is done. Due to the sensitivity of this site, we have avoided
raising public and media awareness of the issue to date. However, we may have to consider this option if this situation is not rectified.

Sincerely,

Martin Davis,
Chair, Conservation Committee
BC Speleological Federation

cc: Hon. Cathy McGregor, Minister of Environment;

Ken Langdale, Recreation Resource Officer, Ministry of
Forests;

Allan Ludwig, District Manager, Mines Branch, Ministry of Employment and
Investment;

members, BC Speleological Federation.