I'm not technically expert in those fields. I certainly respect the comments of Mr. Sterritt, and I understand them. It just so happens that the Douglas Channel has been kind of my second home for 30 years, too, because of the pleasure of fishing, crabbing, and prawning out there. I know it extremely well.
I've read extensively on this project, and from the information I have, and from what I know exists out there, spill response is not where it should be right now. In fact, Mr. Sterritt would probably agree that since the sinking of the ferry that struck Gil Island, emergency response has not changed on the northwest coast of British Columbia. The spill response comes out of Kitimat.
Under Enbridge's proposal, the entire coastal region response and emergency preparedness will grow, and it will employ first nations along the channel to do that emergency response. This will actually enhance what exists, because the transportation of oil takes place now, too, albeit in smaller ways, even into Haida Gwaii. Some million gallons a year of diesel goes in to feed the oil electric generation plants and also some coastal villages up and down the B.C. coast because they're not on the grid.
So this type of activity takes place all the time, and this proposal will enhance it, and not only on the spill response. As you know, in health care, staying healthy is more important than trying to get healthy after you're sick. To that end, this proposal, again, will make the coast safer because radar will be introduced. There will be better weather monitoring, better buoys. The speeds will be altered. Weather conditions will be put in. It has been proven that the tugs that are going to be designed and built in British Columbia to be tethered to these tankers can actually stop a tanker or steer a tanker if it loses rudder control or power.
I can't dispute what Mr. Sterritt was saying exists today, but I can argue, I think, that a project such as this will enhance not only what will be coming but what is there now. When you talk about what's taking place now, there's a 50-kilometre exclusion zone on the outside of Haida Gwaii, from Alaska to Cherry Point down in Washington State. About 350 tankers a year go down there and have for many years.
The 50-kilometre exclusion zone is there because there are no rescue tugs anywhere along that sphere, so if a tanker were to get in trouble off the coast of British Columbia, Haida Gwaii or otherwise, the rescue tug would have to come from Alaska or Washington State. Under this plan, they will be closer to home and they will be locally operated. It's amazing how it will change this.