The Lake Petitcodiac Preservation Association is criticizing the consultation process surrounding the upcoming opening of the causeway gates that cross Moncton's Petitcodiac River.

Engineers, geologists and Moncton municipal officials held a public meeting and information session on Thursday to discuss the Petitcodiac causeway.

While the official public meeting was held inside the Moncton Lion's Club, the preservation association was forced to set up its own information booth in a trailer across the street from the open house.

Shannon Douthwright, the co-chair of the association, said the consultation process has not been transparent.

"We've tried to get information. And we've had to go through [the Right to Information Act] to get information," Douthwright said.

"We've asked to participate and had our concerns known to the public in this event but we were denied access or [permission] to set up our own booth."

Return of fish passage

Inside the building, Jacques Paynter, the communications director with AMEC, an engineering firm involved in the Petitcodiac River project, said the gates could be open in six to eight weeks.

Amid flashing presentations and detailed maps, Paynter told the audience about the advantages to opening the causeway's gates.

"They'll see a marine estuary that stretches from the Bay of Fundy to Salisbury. You'll see the return of fish passage. You'll see sediment deposition being reversed," Paynter said.

When it comes to determining when to open the gates, Paynter said the primary objective is to move as much of the river's sediment as possible out.

The contentious causeway, which was built in 1968 to connect Moncton to Riverview, clogged the river's powerful tidal bore and blocked the passage of fish in the Petitcodiac River.

In 2003, the river was ranked second on a list prepared by B.C. environmentalists of the most endangered rivers in Canada.

In 2008, the New Brunswick government committed $20 million to the first stage of a restoration project for the 3,000 square-kilometre watershed.

The province plans to replace the causeway gates with a four-lane bridge from Riverview to Moncton.

The total cost of the project has been pegged at $68 million.