The Cariboo Regional District rescinded the State of Local Emergency in the Likely Community area Friday.
Al Richmond, Chair of the CRD, says the order which was instituted by the CRD on August 5th in response to the Mt. Polley tailings pond breach, was lifted after an assessment completed by Golder Associates deemed the tailings plug at Polley Lake was stable.
“The concern all along has been the tailings plug at the end of Polley Lake.”
“We indicated as long as there was potential for that plug to dislodge and further discharge of material into Hazeltine Creek and potentially into Quesnel Lake that restricted access and State of Emergency would remain in place until such time we believed it safe in the public’s interest.”
Although Richmond says he understands the hardships the state of emergency had on the community of Likely, officials are continuing to work diligently with the community.
“Certainly I think from the community’s point of view, they’ve been under a fair bit of stress and I don’t think to have the Local State of Emergency was helping that at all.”
“That said, it’s been a traumatic time for all the communities out there and they’re in the process of healing while we try to move forward in rebuilding their economy and rebuilding the confidence in tourism out there.”
“We’re just going to move forward in a positive manner.”
Orders restricting road access from public use ordered by the Ministry of Forest and Natural Resource Operation remain in effect for:
-Horsefly-Likely Forest Service Road (FSR) (aka “Ditch Road”) from the junction with Horsefly-Polley FSR to the Mitchell Bay recreation site
-Horsefly-Gavin FSR (aks “Gavin Road”) from the west side of Mount Polley’s operations through to the junction with the Ditch Road
-Horsefly-Polly Lake FSR in its’ entirety (access to Polley Lake recreation site)