Dear Editor:
Why do I care about Bill 23? Our farm has an environmental farm plan. Our land forms the headwaters of the Eramosa River that runs through Guelph and eventually reaches Lake Erie, providing source water for drinking and habitat and recreation as it flows. We have planted somewhere around 5,000 trees, fenced off our wetlands, used cover crops to establish our hay fields, use no chemicals to farm, and we have declared three acres under conservation on our property which means that our taxes on that portion are reduced in exchange for our protection of that ecologically important area. We do everything we can to make a living off our land, enjoy it, and protect it.
I care about Bill 23 because I understand that our farm is only a small piece of a very large puzzle that needs to be protected as a whole, not according to political boundaries. The lines on the map don’t tell water where to flow. A lot of years and a lot of expertise have gone into protecting our watershed. It’s now been thrown under the bus. Once it’s gone, there’s no getting it back. It won’t solve the housing shortage, if there even is a housing shortage. It’s more like an affordability crisis which should ease with the upcoming recession as investors have other options for their money and houses aren’t seen as a commodity but as places to live once again.
I object to the dismantling of the conservation authorities; I object to the way the bill was rammed through in the middle of municipal elections that disallowed thoughtful front lines input; and I object to the obvious connections between Premier Ford’s government and developers.
I object to the downloading of development fees, the subsidies to developers, and the removal of checks that were in place to protect our future environment. All of this will resonate long after Premier Ford has retired. I have no children but I feel sorry for those who do, leaving this mess to them to clean up, if they even can.
That’s why I care.
It’s not over yet. Keep writing. Write to all levels of government since we’ve all got a lot at stake. Remind them why they have a job – to look after us.
Karen Dallimore,
Erin