Cable Bay Lands (West Side) Public Hearing

Greetings!

This Thursday evening April 16th 2026 is very big for the lands around the much-loved Cable Bay Trail.

Nanaimo City Council is holding a Public Hearing starting at 7pm after which they will vote on a zoning bylaw to change the status of the lands WEST of the trail from Rural Resource (AR1) to Heavy Industry.

The lands EAST of the trail are not up for discussion, but it’s important that we tell council they MUST be protected, one way or another.

The lands on the west side are owned by Nanaimo Forest Products Limited (NFPL), who have proposed industrial lots as close as 50 m from the trail.

In-Person Submissions: Anyone who attends the Public Hearing can speak for up to 3 minutes. The protocol for these events is no clapping, and no calling out. Hand-held signs are allowed. And please be respectful – insults and anger will backfire, and give us all a bad name. Come prepared to be there until 11pm.

If there are still people at the mic at 11pm, the meeting will be adjourned, and continue next Wednesday, April 22nd, in the same place.

You can speak twice, after others have spoken, but you woud be wise to state that your second presentation brings new information.

Written submissions must be provided by 2pm April 16, to ensure they are received by Council:

ONLINE: Submit written comments directly through the City’s website at www.nanaimo.ca/publichearing or by email to public.hearing@nanaimo.ca

MAIL: City of Nanaimo, Planning & Development, 455 Wallace Street, Nanaimo BC, V9R 5J6, headed ‘550 Phoenix Way Rezoning”

BY DROPBOX: : Deposit in the drop box outside the Service and Resource Centre, a11 Dunsmuir Street.

What should we be saying?

There are two approaches, and most people are supporting one or the other. Diversity is important. Everyone’s thoughts are valid. There is no “right” or wrong”.

One approach is that we need to protect these ecosystems and

make the entire area a park for all to enjoy. 21,000 people have signed a Petition requesting that the area become a park, and most of the written submissions support this simple “Say NO” approach to development of any kind.

The other approach is being taken by those who accept that the land was agreed on as “industrial” in the city’s Official Community Plan, after a lot of public engagement, and that there’s a strong will within council to approve rezoning to heavy industrial (I-4), because there is a shortge of such land in the area. This group of people are arguing for a delay, however, and a subsequent improvement of the rezoning bylaw, because (among other things):

(a) the proposed zoning bylaw has been badly crafted, and has internal contradictions. For example, the environmental report says “no net water loss”, which would require pervious surfaces, while the Site Servicing report requires a single perimeter drain to catch water run-off, which would badly imact the forest alongside the Cable Bay Trail;
(b) engagement with the Snuneymux First Nation is incomplete;
(c) the proposed buffer zone next to the trail is “average 100 metres”, and only 50 metres right next to the trail. It should be a firm 100 metres or more;
(d) the plan allows for the cutting of 7,390 trees and their replacement with 9x seedlings. The Sensitive Ecosystems Development Permit Area (DPA) that covers the land only allows for the felllng of 4 trees without special consent. Once cut, the land will be taken over by invasive broom, which is almost impossible to eradicate, and becomes a fire risk;
(e) the staff report on the health and other impacts of heavy industrial air and water pollution that council voted for has not been completed;
(f) the potential to write a Climate Action Development Permit Area for the land has not even been considered. This would enable some degree of control over future activities on the land, and the development of a more envirtonmentally friendly approach to development, minimizing the felling of trees, among other things. See here and here

The Agenda for the Public Hearing is here: https://pub-nanaimo.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=0a021b08-0b06-40cb-940a-5d501abdef3e&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English

The filed paperwork for the project is here (scroll down): https://www.nanaimo.ca/whatsbuilding/Folder/RA000503

The Staff report is here: https://www.nanaimo.ca/whatsbuilding/Files/RA000503/RPT_C260323RA503_950PhoenixWay_AgendaCopy.pdf

The rezoning site plan is here: https://www.nanaimo.ca/whatsbuilding/Files/RA000503/ra503%20Plan_Site%20Survey%20REV%2024OCT24.pdf

The Aquaparian Environmental Assessment of the land is here: https://www.nanaimo.ca/whatsbuilding/Files/RA000503/ra503%20Rpt_Environmental%20Assessment%20REV%2026MAR16_Redacted.pdf

The Public Submissions received so far are here:https://www.nanaimo.ca/docs/property-development/development-applications/public-hearing-docs—ongoing/ra503-950-phoenix-way—submissions_redacted.pdf

At the time of writing, there are 194 submissions: 192 opposed, only 2 in favour. The Snuneymuxw First Nation has written a strongly worded letter opposing the rezoning because they are in the middle of an engagement process with the City to resolve significant issues regarding the lands, and this process is NOT complete.

Nanaimo’s “what happens?” sheet on Public hearings is here: https://www.nanaimo.ca/docs/cannabis/crs-public-hearing-information-sheet.pdf

We hope to see you on Thursday!

Sharp-Tailed Snakes and Other Reptiles

Here is the video from Carrina Maslovat’s and Laura Matthias’ presentation https://youtu.be/H7_HeeEQlLE. If you have an area of sun-filled Garry oak meadow on your land, and are interested to set up artificial cover object (black asphalt shingle) to observe if you have these tiny snakes (see below) on your land, please contact Linda Brooymans at the Nanaimo area Land Trust. stewardship@nalt.bc.ca The video explains all about it.

The YES BioBlitz 2025

Here is our 2025 BioBlitz Report

YES BioBlitz 2025 report final Download

What you need – and it’s all free!

All you need to participate in the BioBlitz are:

An iNaturalist account or app, which is free.

A smart phone or camera to capture images or sounds.

A smart phone or computer to upload your images or sounds.

You can use the iNaturalist App or the webpage iNaturalist.ca.

Where to go?

The area for this year’s YES Bioblitz is the same as 2024. It includes Ladysmith, South Nanaimo, Cassidy, and our coastal waters to the east – see map below. There are many public parks where you can explore, and there are reserves and private lands where you need permission. NOTE: We do not have permission to enter the Woodley Range Ecological Reserve.

Only photos and sound recordings taken during the designated dates and times (6am on April 25^thto 8pm on April 28^th) in this geographical location will count towards our YES BioBlitz. Of course, everything entered in iNaturalist, year-round and in other places, is still valuable.

How?

Check out the resources and links below and note the top tips:

Take good pictures – focus properly, fill the frame or crop the picture, take different views.
Fill the gaps in local knowledge – go to places or look for species others tend to overlook.
Make your data shareable – make sure the location is recorded, and check that your license settings allows the data to be used. iNaturalist recommends using CC0, CC BY or CC BY-NC. Licenses are located under the account settings, in contents and display.

Participate as a school group

There are many great resources on iNaturalist and the Internet on how to participate as a school group, how to take photos that can be identified, and how to use iNaturalist. In some cases you should use Seek, which is a simpler app with more privacy controls, just as educational.

If you have questions, message us in iNaturalist or email us at yesbioblitz@gmail.com. If you want to chat, let us have your phone number and we will call back.

Useful links

Past bioblitzes

How to guides

Other projects in our area!

Protecting Communities and Nature with a New Forest Act

First published in Take 5, September 2024

One winter afternoon in 2021, after a big winter storm, Carolyn and I were enjoying some time off at Cowichan Bay. As we strolled down the dock, expecting to see the sea-lions, we saw instead something that astonished us. The entire sea had turned brown – murky brown. The sea-lions had fled, along with any transient sailors. The fish and ducks had surely fled too. “It happens every year”, we were told.

The 2024 YES Bioblitz

Welcome to the 2024 YES BioBlitz

You can sign up here YESBioBlitz2024 under the community menu. First, you have to register or log-in. It’s all free.

This is such important citizen science, which supports research and policy maker to protect our environment. More and more studies and projects are using this open-source information. It is also a great opportunity to develop a local community of people who understand and care for the environment.

April 26^th – April 29^th Take pictures of wild fungi, plants and animals.

April 30^th– May 5^th Upload and identify the species in iNaturalist.

Results will be announced by May 15^th and prizes chosen by the end of May.

New this year – we are planning a group walk in Cable bay area and in support of the Cable Bay Trail fund raising. Sign up here and meet up at Cable Bay trailhead on Nicola Rd at 10 am, Saturday April 27^th.

All you need to participate in the BioBlitz are:

An iNaturalist account or app, which is free.
A smart phone or camera to capture the images or sounds.
A smart phone or computer to upload the images or sounds.

You can use the iNaturalist App or the webpage iNaturalist.ca.

The area for the Bioblitz is the same as 2023. It includes Ladysmith, South Nanaimo, Cassidy, and our coastal waters to the east – see map below. There are many public parks where you can explore, and there are reserves and private lands, where you need permission. NOTE: We do not have permission to enter the Woodley Range Ecological Reserve.

Only photos and sound recordings taken during the designated dates and times (6 AM on April 26^thto 8 PM on April 29^th) in our chosen geographical location will count towards our YES BioBlitz. Of course, everything entered in iNaturalist, year-round and in other places, is still valuable.

This year’s prizes will be a selection of nature books and cards.

Participate as a school group

There are many great resources on iNaturalist and on the internet on how to participate as a school group, how to take photos that can be identified, and how to use iNaturalist.

If you have questions please message us in iNaturalist or email us at yesbioblitz@gmail.com. If you want to chat, let us have your phone number and we will call back.

Useful links

Checkout other projects in our area!

Alien Invasions in Yellow Point-Cedar

by Nikki Toxopeus

The other day, my two woodland guides and I were coming back from a beautiful walk to Long Lake and one of my young guides leapt from the path and ripped out a solitary green stalk of Scotch Broom.