Sunshine Coast RCMP confirm at least three more people have been arrested since officers moved in on Sept. 9 to enforce a court injunction against interfering with logging on cutblock A87125 on the slopes of Mount Elphinstone.
On Sept. 14, a 28-year-old Roberts Creek man was arrested after locking himself to some logging equipment.
There was a similar incident four days later.
“On Sept. 18, police were called to the area of B&K Road after protesters again impeded logging operations and violated the terms of the Supreme Court injunction,” Const. Harrison Mohr said.
“Police arrived to find that a 24 year-old male from Bowen Island had used a lock to chain himself to a piece of machinery. After some negotiation and de-escalation by police, the male agreed to unlock himself from the machine. That male, along with a 22-year-old female from Qualicum Beach, were arrested for civil contempt of court.”
RCMP were also called early Monday morning (Sept. 19) when a worker from Peninsula Logging found the road blocked by a large pile of brush that had been set on fire. The logger reported seeing four people run off into the woods. RCMP did not find any suspects, or make any arrests.
The main protests against the logging have been organized by the group Elphinstone Logging Focus, but in an email to Coast Reporter the group says it does not condone activity like the incident on Sept. 19.
In a statement released Sept. 13, the Sierra Club said: “The type of peaceful confrontation undertaken by Elphinstone Logging Focus is a symptom of a non-democratic and disrespectful government process. While Sierra Club B.C. neither practises nor advocates civil disobedience, we understand that often it is the language of the unheard.
“The government needs to rescind this cutblock permit, commence a comprehensive park expansion and connectivity implementation process through engagement with the Squamish and shíshálh Nations and local communities, and respect the Sunshine Coast Regional District OCP bylaw calling for an expansion of the Mount Elphinstone Provincial Park.”
All the people arrested so far have been told to appear in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Sept. 26, to coincide with a hearing on making the current interim injunction permanent.
