A small endangered turtle has halted the city's multi-million-dollar plan to dredge Burnaby Lake.

The NOW learned Monday that the Ministry of Environment decided not to give the city a wildlife salvaging permit because of concerns about the endangered Western painted turtle, which lives in the lake. The dredging project was supposed to start today (Wednesday).

Biologist Vanessa Kilburn, who has been fighting to save the Western painted turtles, was ecstatic to hear that the permit was denied.

I'm so happy. That's the best news ever," she said, adding she thought the Environment Ministry would cave to political pressure. "I can't believe the ministry actually stuck to their guns like that."

The lake has been filling up with sediment for years, and the city said it wants to dredge to protect and enhance the ecosystem and re-establish a rowing course to international standards for events and training.

The Western painted turtle is listed as endangered and is one step away from being extinct in Canada. Since it's protected under the Species at Risk Act, it's a criminal offense to kill, harm or harass the turtles. According to Kilburn, there are about 100 Western painted turtles in Burnaby Lake, making it the largest viable population in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. Biologists charged with helping the species recover were hoping to hatch eggs from the Burnaby Lake population to boost numbers in other areas.

Biologists are concerned that the dredging could kill the turtles because they hibernate by burrowing themselves in the mud beneath the water when temperatures drop to 15 degrees Celsius. No one knows exactly where they will hibernate this year, and they tend to group together. That's why the ministry asked the city to tag a significant portion of the turtle population so it could be tracked by radio and the hibernating spots avoided while dredging. The problem is, lake temperatures are already between 15 and 17 degrees, and, as of Sunday, not a single turtle had been caught and tagged.

Kilburn said it may be too late to tag this year since the turtles are likely "laying low" already on their way to hibernating spots.

"That's why they are not catching any," she said. "The point of this is you don't wait till the last minute."

Jennifer McGuire at the Environment Ministry said the permit was denied because there was not enough data about where the turtles would be hibernating. Before the ministry can give the go-ahead to dredge, they need to know where the turtles are.

"It's entirely up to the city and their consultants," said McGuire, when asked when the permit would be able to go through.

But it's not quite clear why the turtles are being dealt with at the last minute, as the city is poised to start dredging.

"We all knew about the turtles," said Lambert Chu, the city's engineering director.

Chu said the city had three options: cancel the contract, appeal the decision to reject the permit, or go to the Environment Ministry for advice from the same people who guided the city through the whole approval process.

Dredging equipment is already set up at the lake. Chu said the total cost of the project is about $16 million and delays would be costly.

"Money and work, they are all replaceable. What is disappointing is this is the work envisioned by Burnaby council to save Burnaby Lake," Chu said. "Yet in the 11th hour, when we have a contractor put in place, and to come up with this show-stopper, it is very disconcerting. We're very displeased with the decisions given by the environmental stewardship division."