Members of the community flocked to the Crest Hotel last night, as Pinnacle Pellet held an open house for the proposed pellet export terminal in Prince Rupert.

The president and COO of Pinnacle Renewable Energy says the public plays an important role in the assessment of the facility.

"To look at that work that's been done by the various different regulatory bodies as well as through input from various engineering firms, First Nations, and community leaders and basically provide us with any additional insight into the design of the facility that may have been missed through that process to ensure something that is really the very best project to put forward for final assessment,” said Leroy Reitsma.

The Prince Rupert Port Authority is a regulatory member in this process and it's their job to oversee the environmental review.

Some issues brought forth by community members were the effects of dust and noise.

Public comments will be gathered until June 5th and a public dialogue will be held on June 18th. Reitsma explains the purpose of this next meeting.

“To allow us to take all the input that we’ve received and prepare a presentation that addresses the concerns as well as presents all of the information that we've gathered through the engineering phase and consultation of various other parties. Put it forward in a presentation and then have a Q& A session with the public where people can ask questions that they still might have."

Resident Ken Shaw brought his concerns to council two weeks asking, saying the environmental assessment period should to be extended to more than just a screening process.