AGM Friends of Ecological Reserves – Minutes from 2019 meeting

Board Present: Jenny Feick, Mike Fenger, Garry Fletcher Marilyn Lambert, Rick Page, Mary Rannie, Stephen Ruttan and Liz Williams.

This year’s Annual General Meeting for the Friends of Ecological Reserves took place on the evening of May 24, 2019 at the University of Victoria. The business portion of our meeting began at 6:30 pm.

Our long-time President Mike Fenger had stepped down last year and no one came forward to take his place. It was decided at an earlier Board meeting that the current Board members would take turns at being the Co-Chair. Mary Rannie is the current Co-Chair and she led this year’s AGM. The usual business of adopting last year’s minutes and reviewing the agenda were carried out. Our accountant gave a short summary of the state of our finances and the Membership secretary announced our membership numbers.

The current Board members were introduced and asked if they wished to stay on for the coming year. They all agreed. Mary called for nominations for new Board members. While there were no new nominations, Bristol Foster, one of the founders of Friends of Ecological Reserves, stood up and asked if he could once again serve on the Board. We are all thrilled to have him attend meetings and provide his valuable insights as to where we are going as a non-profit society.

Mary then gave a summary of our past year’s activities and highlights which included our work as Intervenors in the Kinder Morgan Pipeline Expansion project:

“Mike Fenger, Garry Fletcher and Louise Beinhauer submitted a 30-page summary to the NEB Reconsideration hearings review. A Herculean task, it was rewarded with 15 references in the NEB’s final report. The mentions were, for example, that reduced speed mitigates noise and GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions, and reduces the probability of marine mammal strikes. Another mention was of FER’s suggestion of a lateral displacement of shipping to the south, i.e. farther from Race Rocks and Victoria. This would reduce risk to local killer whale populations. FER’s concern over the adequacy of baseline data along shipping lanes was also mentioned, and FER’s recommendation that Trans Mountain’s marine public outreach program include risks to public health in the event of a marine spill.”

Mary went on to report on a housekeeping duty we undertook in the fall of 2018. Under the Societies Act of British Columbia which came into effect November 28, 2016, every pre-existing BC Society was required to file with the Registrar of Companies a transition application that contains the constitution, bylaws, statement of directors, and registered office. To comply with this, our Board member Rick Page undertook all the work required to research and write up the application. A General Meeting of the members of Friends of Ecological Reserves was held on October 26, 2018 to consider a Special Resolution of the Members to authorize the directors to file the transition application. This action was approved by all members in attendance.

The business portion of the meeting concluded with the introduction of our guest Speaker, Dr. John K. B. Ford, who has been involved in field studies of marine mammals off Canada’s west coast since the mid 1970s. His talk was entitled “Orca’s in Peril? Culture and Conservation of West Coast Killer Whales.”