WATCH: BC to open first dedicated ash scattering site

DELTA — In many cultures, scattering of ashes is an integral part of honouring loved ones who have passed on.

On Thursday, after years of advocacy from community members, provincial and municipal officials announced British Columbia's first site dedicated to facilitate that practice.

"Everyone in the province can appreciate that the way we honour our loved ones matters," Attorney General Niki Sharma said during a press conference at the Fraser Viewpoint on Tilbury Island. "This site will provide a place for people to gather, respect the wishes of their loved ones, and carry out meaningful cultural and spiritual traditions in the communities they call home."

She lamented the fact that for many in Greater Vancouver's South Asian community, the lack of dedicated ash scattering sites has forced them to "explore very complicated and expensive alternatives."

"This site is the first of its kind," Sharma continued, "and as you can imagine, it required government staff to ensure it was approved in accordance with all government laws."

"We did a lot of work to look through our laws to figure out what people needed to do or didn't need to do to set up a site like this," she said in response to a question from Sitka Media. "Generally speaking, the dispersal of ashes in running water is not agains the law in BC — but to establish a site like this we needed to work with the City of Delta to make sure that all the permits were in place for building any structures."

Sharma said guidelines have been created, and will be shared with other municipalities interested in setting up similar sites. She added that Surrey was already deep into the process of creating one of their own.

Sharma's sentiments were echoed by Delta Mayor George Harvie, who noted that, "for many years, members of Delta’s Indian diaspora have expressed a desire to have a safe, respectful, and access location along the Fraser River where families can immerse or scatter the ashes of their loved ones."

He explained that city council recently approved up to $225,000 in funding to "move forward to provide safe access to the Fraser River's water edge" at the site.

Among those in attendance was Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon. He recalled losing his father during the pandemic and having difficulty finding a way to properly honour him, noting that sites like the one announced will greatly help those in similar situations.