Dear Editor:
An open letter to Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott.
We are appalled to read that not one member of the Conservative Party opposed Bill 23.
As our elected representative, we are calling on you to have the courage to stand up for what is right. If we do not protect our natural ecologically sensitive areas while they exist, we shall be facing the destruction of irreplaceable natural areas which help to sustain our planet.
Our wetland and forests are vital to sustaining the ecosystems so that we have a diversity of wildlife, forests and habitats for God’s creatures. Most importantly we require a sustainable watershed for life, as without water we die.
In the 1990s I chaired an organization opposed to a landfill on the Niagara Escarpment. That landfill likewise would have affected the downstream water supply. After nine years of opposing the dump, the victory was won. The 20 million-tonne dump pales before Bill 23.
Conservation areas have been put at the mercy of this government. Municipal input has been overruled.
This land grab benefits a few developers at the expense of the citizens of Ontario. We lose forests, wetlands, farmlands, tourist and recreational space and face higher taxes, fees, and a reduction in building community services.
We can hardly believe that this Conservative government, which was elected to represent the people, has so little regard for its constituents.
The Conservative Party presented itself as representing the people. It should have run on a platform of representing developers if it had the notion of being honest.
Pat and Chris Woode,
Fergus