Whistler – Representatives from the Pemberton Regional Airport Authority (PRAA) have been making the rounds of community groups and local stakeholders to canvass opinions on the proposed options for making the airport profitable, and PRAA chair David MacKenzie said most of the feedback gathered so far has been positive.
But questions have been raised about the future environmental and noise-related impacts of the expansion proposals put forward in the Pemberton Airport Project Definition Report (PDR), which was released in July.
The comments so far have been “fairly positive, (but) obviously there’s concerns about noise and the environment — these are important steps we need to investigate further,” MacKenzie said.
MacKenzie stressed that no decisions have been made yet, as the PRAA is in the process of soliciting public feedback to find out what people think of all the options. The PRAA has asked the Province for $500,000 to cover the necessary environmental, social and archeological impact studies, he added.
The Province already contributed $100,000 to cover the cost of the business planning exercises that included the PDR, with the aim of finding a way to make the airport run profitably. The facility currently operates with deficits of $30,000 to $50,000 each year, though this year will be an exception thanks to an influx of rental revenue from the Pemberton Festival.
The public consultation process thus far has included presentations to affected groups such as the current airport users, the Mount Currie Band and the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) board.
The airport users stressed the importance of supporting and protecting general aviation, MacKenzie said, and he thinks the airport expansion will do that.
“If we are to expand the airport, (then) it’s there and it’s going to benefit general aviation,” he said.
Mount Currie representatives voiced some of the same environmental and noise-related concerns that others have expressed, MacKenzie said, and they emphasized the importance of archeological studies and the need to keep up constant consultation.
More than 300 archeological digs have already been undertaken to prepare for lease lots to be rented by carriers such as Merlin Air, and nothing has been found yet, MacKenzie said.
“Mount Currie’s certainly been encouraged that we’ve taken that step,” he said.
The next steps in the public consultation include open houses in Pemberton and Mount Currie and a survey, the details of which are not yet set.
The options discussed in the PDR include lengthening the current 4,000-foot runway to 6,000 feet and adding a new passenger terminal, which could allow carriers such as WestJet and Horizon Air to service the airport with its small jets.
That package of improvements, which bears an estimated cost of about $51 million in capital spending, could be covered by means such as government grants, operating revenues and an airport improvement fee.
But before any of that can happen, more data needs to be gathered to make sure the larger-scale flights are feasible. That includes collecting reliable, in-depth weather information so carriers can predict whether they can run scheduled services in Pemberton, which can be done through a new Automated Weather Operating System.
The system can cost up to $120,000, but the PRAA is looking to work with a private partner to pay for its installation, MacKenzie said.
The AWOS data is necessary because the commercial carriers “pretty much need to be able to guarantee that the schedule is going to go according to plan,” he said.
The PRAA also needs to find out if a Required Navigation Procedure (RNP) system can be installed here to make landings and takeoffs safer in the difficult Pemberton weather and terrain. The authority has committed to conducting a feasibility study for the RNP technology, and the study’s $10,000 to $15,000 cost will be covered by the Province’s $100,000 grant, MacKenzie said.
Following a discussion with Premier Gordon Campbell at the recent Union of British Columbia Municipalities meeting, MacKenzie said the Province recognizes the importance of Pemberton’s airport.
“We certainly have the ear of the government right now,” he said.
