opinion
www.comoxvalleyrecord.com
COMOX VALLEY RECORD • Thursday, November 28, 2013
A25
Field Sawmill site valuable – not for industry Dear editor, Project Watershed’s proposal for the Field Sawmill site and the estuary in your Nov. 21 issue is timely. The Field Sawmill site is virtually adjacent to Area B and a vital and important part of future flooding and high-tide storm surges. Flooding and water know no boundaries and the metal cladding that shapes the Courtenay River mouth into a canal exacerbates storm surges and causes flooding on the west side of the river. Project Watershed’s proposal is a vital part to protecting Courtenay’s and Area B’s homes and businesses. There were times
before the war and in the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s that our estuary was a sewage dump (where the civil airport now operates) and it was surrounded by a wide variety of industry. Vast acres of the estuary were used to store logs and their bark sank to the bottom and destroyed the vegetation and the all-important eelgrass. Ship repairs, fuel storage, building supplies and cement works operated without care or concern along the estuary shores, the hydro dam and over fishing destroyed the fish industry and much more. Except for the hydro dam, they are all gone now; no lumber stor-
Jim Gillis
age, no cement works, no fishing and 99 per cent of the industry is gone. We have an opportunity here. Times have changed and we must change with the times. We have climate change, ocean rise
and storm surges that threaten our estuary and adjacent roads and businesses. We have an opportunity to do what has been done on the Thames in England, the Columbia in Oregon and many other places around the world. We can revitalize our estuary and bring it back to its original state of health. We can mitigate storm surges by planting eelgrass, developing soft-shore protection and allowing the Tsolum River to find its original path to the sea which was through the dyked farmland. We should allow the sea access under Dyke Road with a causeway so that high-
tide storm surges will dissipate naturally. All of this could be done over years without the expense of creating hard-sided dykes. There seems to be a belief that the Field Sawmill site is valuable. It is, if it is reverted back to nature. However, there is very little valuable land on that site which will house buildings. It was valuable when the Field Sawmill was churning out highgrade lumber and providing good-paying jobs. But, someone way off in a head office of an international company decided it was not making them enough money and
closed it without local consultation. A sawmill was built on that site when there were no rules and regulations with regard to riparian areas, flood plains and the environment. It would have to meet and exceed all new environmental regulations today. It sits on a floodplain and it is a narrow neck of land with low-flying civilian aircraft flying over it. It makes no sense to develop this land. If we do, it will exacerbate more flooding and devastate the properties across from it on the west side of the river. The best thing to do is to give Project
Watershed’s concept some serious consideration and to weave a plan for the estuary in concert with the K’ómoks Band and the K’ómoks Estuary Management Plan as soon as possible. We, as residents and citizens of the Comox Valley, have to change with the times or suffer the consequences of more storm surges, sea rise and costly floods to our community. Let’s support Project Watershed’s proposal and encourage the mayor and council of Courtenay to give it serious consideration. Jim Gillis Editor’s note: Jim Gillis is the Comox Valley Regional District’s Area B director.
Council spurns Flu shots not necessarily worthwhile financial help and educated in Dear editor, Even with a huge finances helping to make our commu4.3-per-cent tax nity a better place increase to Courtenay taxpayers this to live by providing their valuable year — not to mention the significant input, observations jump in water and and recommendations sewer conrates cerning — City finances, council spending has no budgets interest in and priorities receiving to City public staff and input or council recomwith no mendacost to tions to taxpayers. look for Larry Jangula Apparsavings ently they believe and efficiencies at they are all-knowCity Hall. Even when Coun. ing and any outside Winchester publicly scrutiny would be an inconstated venience that to their “none of Apparown us are ently they agendas. profesbelieve they are Coun. sionals around Ambler all-knowing the summed and any outside up his table,” she scrutiny would opinion and the by saying be an inconveother “ I don’t nience to counsee the cillors their own agen- problem rejected it solves. das. Mayor I see it as Janjust more Paul Deeton window gula’s proposal dressing.” to create a financial Hang on for advisory committee the next shocking like so many other announcement of municipalities have. tax increases! Think about it It looks like this — an independent council isn’t done committee comspending yet. prised of local proPaul Deeton, fessionals, trained Courtenay
❝
Dear editor, In response to an article entitled “Help hospital, get flu shot” by Tom Fletcher, I have been a health-care worker for 27 years and worked in a long-term care facility for the past 22 years. During that time I have experienced many flu seasons and outbreaks with various degrees of illness and effects to both residents and co-workers. There are a couple of seemingly biased statements by Tom Fletcher, in the article that I object to. It states that, “Staff, doctors, outside contractors and visitors will have to put patients first.” Although many healthcare workers refuse to get flu vaccines for various valid reasons, I believe that this has no bearing on the fact that patients’ health care and well-being is of utmost
importance. The article states 40 per cent of long-term care workers refuse immunization and that, “Their objections make no sense.” Aside from the self-serving “rights” argument, and the complaint that the flu vaccine isn’t effective enough,” I object to the connotation that “human rights” are selfserving in this situation. The human rights issue is a very important one; it is our human rights that protect individual choice in our society. We do have the right to refuse the vaccine for personal reasons and should not feel attacked or discriminated against. I have seen many co-workers who have been immunized get the flu, while I — a non-immunized staff member — have continued to work without getting the influenza over the years.
I do not object to others receiving the vaccine. I have experienced that the flu affects many indiscriminately regardless of immunization or not. I had the opportunity to talk to provincial medical health officer Dr. Perry Kendall. In our conversation, I asked him, “If a strain of influenza breaks out in our workplace, one that staff members have not been immunized against, would immunized workers be required to wear a mask?” The answer that he gave me was not the answer I wanted to hear and it seemed vague, coming from a government official that is so adamant about non-immunized workers wearing masks for four months. Dr. Kendall responded, “They may or may not be required to wear a mask during an outbreak.”
Christmas in July W E E K E N D PA S S E S
Special Limited Number On Sale December 1, 2013
$129
& TAX
❞
AVAILABLE ONLINE!
www.islandmusicfest.com
I believe that the provincial health department should already have a policy in place concerning this important question. If an outbreak of a different strain was to come along it would make sense to me that without hesitation all should be required to wear a mask; especially now since the provincial health officer has made this recent policy. Rita Coulter, Comox Valley
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Drop letters off at 765 McPhee Ave. in Courtenay or Mail to: 765 McPhee Ave., Courtenay, V9N 2Z7 or e-mail to: letters@comoxvalleyrecord.com Be sure your letter includes a signature and phone number
FESTIVAL DATES July 11 - 13, 2014