A lawyer for Elphinstone Logging Focus (ELF) was expected to appear in a Vancouver courtroom on Sept. 8 to argue for the lifting of an injunction against the group’s blockade on the slopes of Mount Elphinstone.
ELF set up camp on a road leading into cutblock A87125 (near the Twist and Shout mountain biking trail) in June, shortly after BC Timber Sales put it up for auction. The logging rights were awarded to a local company, Peninsula Logging.
The company filed an injunction application in late August, arguing that they’ve suffered “loss and damages” because they haven’t been able to start work they have a legal right to undertake on the cutblock.
An interim injunction was granted, ex parte, meaning ELF’s lawyer was not able to file a counter-petition. The group said it was hoping Thursday’s court appearance would result in the interim injunction being set aside until a full hearing on Sept. 26.
According to ELF, the company agreed not to ask RCMP to enforce the interim injunction until the Sept. 8 hearing wraps up. The agreement followed back-to-back RCMP visits to the camp with company officials on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1.
Sunshine Coast RCMP are also investigating an incident that happened after the second visit. ELF alleges that on the afternoon of Sept. 1, two people in a white pickup truck drove up to the area, started taking material from the protest camp, and then sped off with one of the campers – who’d climbed in to try to recover the items – still in the back.
ELF says a video of the incident has been turned over to police.
RCMP Const. Harrison Mohr told Coast Reporter that “police are continuing to monitor the situation with the goal of fostering peace between all parties.”
