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To : Secretary Maralie R Salas From: Arthur MacKay ATTN: Gas Branch 1 The following comments are respectfully submitted for inclusion in the Environmental Impact Statement (Draft ) public input as a response to a submission from Andre Melanson, Eastport entitled: Concerns about accuracy of environmental data supplied to FERC Mr. Melanson expressed "some concerns with some of the data and conclusions that have been presented from a Canadian citizen, a Mr. Art McKay, Executive Director of the St.Croix Estuary Project to FERC." Firstly, I would like to clarify my credentials. I am a marine biologist and I have practiced my profession primarily in the Gulf of Maine and particularly in the Quoddy Region for over 40 years. During this time I have collected data from thousands of subtidal and intertidal sites and have published dozens of papers. I provided the original environmental assessment for the Fundy Weir Fishermens Association during the Pittston Refinery hearings and I have been recognized as an expert witness to several hearings in Maine. Additionally, I maintain a large library of local biological publications and am in contact with other professional biologist who work in this area. The data I have provided on aquatic mammals, aquatic birds and various other aquatic organisms that live in Passamaquoddy Bay/ Head Harbor region in "a very quantified definitive manner" has been obtained from recognized sources. The bird counts are readily available to review at: http://www.bsc-eoc.org/iba/site.jsp?siteID=NB037&seedet=Y . These data are collected by experts and listed with Important Bird Areas of Canada. The IBA program is an international conservation initiative co-ordinated by BirdLife International. The Canadian co-partners for the IBA program are Bird Studies Canada and Nature Canada (Formerly the Canadian Nature Federation). With regards to counts for other marine invertebrate species, this is also done scientifically and I refer you to the following references for methodologies and results in the Quoddy Region: MacKay, Aurthur et. al. BAY OF FUNDY RESOURCE INVENTORY:ST.CROIX RIVER-PASSAMAQUODDY BAY. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island, NB. March 31, 1978.MacKay, A.A. THE SEA URCHIN ROE INDUSTRY. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island, NB. 1976. MacKay, A.A. BAY OF FUNDY RESOURCE INVENTORY - DEER ISLAND-CAMPOBELLO IS LAND. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island, NB. 1978. MacKay, A.A. BAY OF FUNDY RESOURCE INVENTORY - PEA POINT TO POINT LEPREAU. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island, NB.1978. MacKay, A.A. BAY OF FUNDY RESOURCE INVENTORY - GRAND MANAN ARCHIPELAO. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island, NB..1978 MacKay, A.A. BAY OF FUNDY RESOURCE INVENTORY - DEER ISLAND-CAMPOBELLO IS LAND. Marine Research Associates, Deer Island,NB.. 1978 With regards to Marine Mammals I refer you to: MacKay, A.A. A ZOOGEOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF THE MAMMALS OF THE GRAND MANAN ARCHIPELAGO. N.B. unpubl. man., l 964. Gaskin, D.E., M. Holdrinet and R. Frank. ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDE RESIDUES IN HARBOUR PORPOISES FROM THE BAY OF FUNDY REGION. Nature. Vol 233 (5320): 499-500,1971 Gaskin, D.E., K. Ishida and R. Frank. MERCURY IN HARBOUR PORPOISES (Phocoena phocoena) FROM THE BAY OF FUNDY REGION. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Can. Vol. 29(11): 1644-1645, 1972. Gaskin, D.E.1973. MARINE MAMMALS OF GRAND MANAN-PASSAMAQUODDY REGION, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE HEAD HARBOUR PASSAGE APPROACHES AND THE PROBABLE IMPACT OF AN OIL REFINERY AT EASTPORT, MAINE. WITH ASSOCIATED DATA ON COMMON SEA-BIRD DISTRIBUTION AND RECORDS OF SURFACE SWARMING OF EUPHAUSIDS MEGANYCTIPHANES sp. Special report to the Eastport Working Group. Gaskin, D.E., et. al. MERCURY, DDT AND PCB IN HARBOUR SEALS (Phoca vitulina) FROM THE BAY OF FUNDY AND GULF OF MAINE. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Can. Vol. 30(3): 471475,1973. Gaskin, D.E., P.W. Arnold and B.A. Blair. PHOCOENA PHOCOENA L. Mammalian Species. Soc. of Mammalogists, New Series.42: 1-8, 1974 Gaskin, D.E. EVOLUTION, ZOOGEOGRAPHY, AND ECOLOGY OF CETACEA. Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Ann. Rev. 14:247-346. 1975 Gaskin. D.E.. G.JD. Smith and A.P. Watson. PRELIMINARY STUDY OF MOVEMENTS OF HARBOUR PORPOISES (Phocoena phocoena) IN THE BAY OF FUNDY, USING RADIO TELEMETRIC METH ODS. Can. J. Zool. 53: 1466-1471,1975.11-8 Gaskin, D.E.. M. Holdrinet and R. Frank. FIVE YEAR STUDY OF DDT LEVELS IN HARBOUR POR POIS ES IN THE BAY OF FUNDY, 1969 1973. International Conf. on Marine Mammals, FAO at Bergen, Norway,1976. Mr. Melanson also expressed "concern with the "blanket" statements/assursions concerning the environmental stressors only being local industry and municipalities. Where it is true local industry and municipalities do contribute to a certain degree to the environmental stressors they are not all encompassing." In response to this I wish to state that I do not discount external sources of pollution. However, all data that I use come from the Environmental Protection Agency database for the former Georgia Pacific operation (now Domtar) in Baileyville and Environment Canada's database for Flakeboard Ltd. In St. Stephen, NB. The impacts of air and water pollution, both historical and contemporary have been documented in the publication "The St. Croix Estuary 1604 - 2004. The Environmental Health of the St. Croix Estuary after 400 years", which I authored. This was a 2 -year field study that was published in 2004. It covers all aspects of the physical and biotic characteristics of the area from Salmon Falls to Mill Cove on the Maine side. This is the most recent and definitive study to be conducted in the St. Croix Estuary/Passamaquoddy Bay area and provides important information that bears upon all three proposed LNG terminals. The data are definitive, not as Mr. Melanson suggests spurious. The complete study can be accessed at: http://www.scep.org/Publications/EstuaryHealth/EstuaryHealth2.pdf In light of Mr. Melanson's bringing my professional integrity and qualifications into question, I respectfully request that you include my curriculum vitae as part of the record. It can be accessed at: http://www.bayoffundy.ca/ArtResume.pdf Sincerely |