Iain Marlow(left), Frances Bula and Brent Jang have been nominated in two categories by the Jack Webster Awards
Globe and Mail journalists Brent Jang and Iain Marlow, and regular contributor Frances Bula, have been nominated in two categories by the Jack Webster Awards, which recognize excellence in journalism in British Columbia.
Mr. Jang and Mr. Marlow were named among the finalists for the Business category for their two-part series on the realities of B.C.'s newest gold rush.
Drilling for LNG is busier in the winter, so in January, in -25 temperatures, Mr. Jang navigated the icy roads of the Alaska Highway to Shell Canada's drilling operations. He was the first reporter given such access. His story noted the signs of boom in Fort St. John, but also the cautions: environmental and aboriginal issues and the fierce competition posed by Australia. Mr. Marlow travelled to Gladstone, Australia, to look at how B.C.'s biggest competition for LNG development is faring. He found that where B.C. realistically can expect three LNG export terminals, there are three already in the Gladstone area alone with another one possible. Because expanding facilities is cheaper than building new ones, Australia, with its closer proximity to Asian markets, is out in front.
Globe BC gained a second nomination for Ms. Bula's groundbreaking work on the Portland Hotel Society, the unconventional group that managed Vancouver's safe injection site, as well as other services on the city's Downtown Eastside. Ms. Bula's work explained the downfall of Portland Hotel Society founders Mark Townsend and wife Liz Evans. She reported that the B.C. government was prepared to put the agency into receivership because of financial irregularities that included eyebrow-raising salaries for directors and perks that included European staff trips and high-end hotel stays.
Award winners will be announced Oct. 29.