Biofilm concerns

Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback on this important issue. As an ornithologist, birder, and a father of two, I am concerned about the negative effect RBT2 will have on the ecology of the Fraser Delta. As an ornithologist, I have carefully read the proposed mitigation strategies, the studies that support such mitigation strategies, and the ECCC response to those. I side with ECCC scientists: the proposed port expansion will bring drastic and unmitigable changes to the nutritional value and to the quality of biofilm in the delta. Loss of a reliable food source at a major stop-over site would imperil the survival of the whole Western Sandpiper population.  As a birder, I am concerned as the proposed expansion imperils one of the most amazing experiences I ever had as a birder: the overwhelming cacophony created by thousands of Western Sandpipers migrating through Roberts Bank late at night, their silhouettes against the night sky. As a father, I am concerned that the opportunity for my sons to experience this is being gambled with. The idea that we can recreate optimal conditions for biofilm is unproven. ECCC was clear in its response that the Ecosystem Productivity Model that forms the basis of the proposed mitigation is inadequate and that attempts to create biofilm in the mudflats are unlikely to be successful enough to mitigate the negative impact RBT2 will have on the population of Western Sandpiper.  I urge the Federal government to take a precautionary approach and reject RBT2.