As our provincial and federal governments double down on more LNG expansion, Kitimat residents are sounding the alarm about flaring from LNG Canada.
The "Eye of Sauron"
Nicknamed the "Eye of Sauron" by Kitimat residents, flaring began over a year ago as LNG Canada tested its gas turbines and compressors during commissioning of the LNG export facility.
Flaring is the burning of excess methane and results in local air pollution that worsens health risks for people living in nearby communities.
The flare events last for days or weeks, are often unplanned, and the flame height can reach up to 95 metres high. Residents who live within 2–7 km of the flare have been subjected to toxic black smoke and excessive noise that is impacting their health.
What Kitimat residents are saying
“It sounded like a rocket ship going off all night.”
“I’m at a wit’s end with the noise and the smoke,” he said. “I built this house with my own hands. I dug the foundation, poured the concrete. I put everything I own, all my savings, into it. Now I can’t even sleep in my house, it’s so noisy... Even this morning, it was like 75 to 80 decibels inside my bedroom.”
“It smells like burnt plastic or burnt Styrofoam.”
“I've been having, like, a cough, runny nose, headaches at night time. My boy, the same thing.”
“However big that tower is, that's how big that flame was, and at night time you could hear it roaring like a jet flying over the sky.”
“It's not my first time complaining about... the excessive noise coming from this LNG plant. I cannot stress enough how much disturbance this has caused at my residence and the continuous loss of sleep because of it.”
“My place, it echoes from the back to the front. It shakes my glasses in my cupboard. My dogs bark all night long. I had no sleep from Thursday till basically probably tonight [4 days later] I'll get sleep 'cause it's quiet.”
“At 2:30 when I came home, my backyard was filled with a haze. It went up the stack, came right out the back of my house and my whole backyard was a haze. It smelled like plastic for a few seconds, like burning plastic, and this is the second time this has happened. I've brought this up but I've had no answers...”
“There’s many concerns around that big black plume. Everyone around right now is talking about really severe allergies.”
COUNCIL MEETING | SKEENA WILD | THE NARWHAL | SQUAMISH CHIEF
Flaring is underestimated and omitted from review
New research has found that LNG export terminals flare three times more gas during commissioning than regular operations. These emissions aren't modelled in environmental assessments, even though commissioning is the most polluting phase and lasts for two years on average.
This means that regulators are underestimating air pollution and human health impacts for people living in communities nearby.
Woodfibre LNG claims that commissioning will last for one month with intermittent flare events of 3–4 days. Laura Minet, the lead researcher of the study and head of the Clean Air Lab at the University of Victoria says that's "hard to believe" given that LNG Canada has been in its commissioning phase for over a year.
SQUAMISH CHIEF | RADIO CANADA | READ THE STUDY
Doctors warn "people are getting sick"
Healthcare professionals and Indigenous leaders are calling to halt LNG expansion until the health impacts are studied, warning of serious health risks for frontline communities like Kitimat and Squamish.
Flaring releases benzene, fine particulates, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and carcinogenic volatile organic compounds—all known to harm human health, even over short exposure periods. These pollutants are "linked to heart disease, asthma, pregnancy complications, and premature death."
“In conversations with local residents, especially older adults and those living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, I’ve heard first-hand accounts of worsening symptoms that coincide with heavy flaring from LNG operations," said Ankur Patel, a registered nurse in Kitimat.
TIMES COLONIST | VANCOUVER SUN | THE TYEE | CITY NEWS
TAKE ACTION! Halt LNG expansion until health impacts are studied
It's clear that pollution from flaring at LNG export projects is being systematically underestimated by project proponents. This means the impacts of these hidden emissions on climate, air quality, and human health have not been adequately assessed.
"Our study shows B.C.’s risk assessments are inadequate and fail to protect public health," write Dr. Tim Takaro and Dr. Laura Minet.
My Sea to Sky is calling on the BC government to immediately require full modelling and accounting of flaring emissions for Woodfibre LNG in the LNG commissioning phase.
We are endorsing the call by doctors, nurses, and First Nations leaders for an independent, cumulative, comprehensive human health impacts assessment of the gas industry in BC – from fracking to transport, liquefaction and export.
Please take a minute to send a letter to regulators. Let them know the health impacts of flaring from Woodfibre LNG must be assessed. Talk to your neighbours, call your MLA and MP to share your concerns.
SEND A LETTER!Our communities deserve clean air, not toxic pollution from Woodfibre LNG's flarestack.
Tracey Saxby
Executive Director
My Sea to Sky
My Sea to Sky is incredibly proud and grateful to say that we rely on the My Sea to Sky community for small donations that provide the majority of our funding. Since our launch in 2014, we have been funded through personal savings, family and friends; and powered by the passion of our volunteers. Your generous contribution will help us to run our critical campaigns to defend, protect, and restore Átl’ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound. Can you chip in?
