July 7, 2012


CRD-RELATED SEWAGE PROJECT NEWS: 

- CALWMC MEETS 11 JULY - IN CAMERA FOR ACQUIRING PROPERTY
- LETTER: "SEWAGE PROJECT HAS A BAD SMELL" (WITTER)
- LETTER: "CRD SEWAGE PROJECT COSTLY, NOT NECESSARY" (DAVIS)
- LETTER: "NEW SEWAGE SYSTEM NOT AN IMPROVEMENT" (GOODENOUGH)
- LETTER: "PUBLIC SHOULD HAVE SAY ON COSTLY PROJECTS" (CLINE)

GENERAL SEWAGE-RELATED NEWS:

- GEORGIA STRAIT ALLIANCE COMMUNITY ATLAS - OUR 2 SEWAGE OUTFALLS

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CALWMC MEETS 11 JULY - IN CAMERA FOR ACQUIRING PROPERTY

July 11, 2012 Core Area Liquid Waste Management Committee Agenda  

AGENDA

Motion to close the meeting in accordance with the Community Charter, Part 4, Division 3, Section 90(1) (e) the acquisition, disposition or expropriation of land or improvements.


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LETTER: "SEWAGE PROJECT HAS A BAD SMELL"

Carole Witter
Times Colonist
July 06, 2012

Re: "Sewage-project cash likely 'within weeks,' " July 4.

Whether you agree that we need a different method of sewage treatment or not, this plan stinks.

The Capital Regional District is contemplating shoehorning this plant on to McLoughlin Point at the entrance to the Inner Harbour despite numerous warnings from highly paid experts (hired by the CRD) telling them this site is too small, primarily because it is common knowledge that liquids and solids are best treated on the same site.

As a result, the sludge will need to be piped or trucked through residential communities to another location. The current plan of piping the sludge 18 kilometres to the Hartland Landfill should be enough to have citizens jumping up and down in protest. Consider the environmental impact of that alone.

And if that red flag doesn't catch your attention, how about the estimated annual cost to the individual taxpayer of up to $500 per year forever?

This plan will have a much greater impact on the environment than our existing method of sewage treatment.

You get what you pay for, and this will be a final sale. We can do better and we should demand it.

Carole Witter
Esquimalt


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LETTER: "CRD SEWAGE PROJECT COSTLY, NOT NECESSARY"
 
Thomas (tim) Davis
Times Colonist
July 07, 2012

Re: "Sewage-project cash likely 'within weeks'," July 5.

Geoff Young always struck me as possessed of some common sense. No longer.

Apparently, even though councillor and Capital Regional District chairman Young knows that the sewage project may be unnecessary, he still wants to proceed with the project, solely because the federal and provincial governments could contribute to the project.

My understanding is that homeowners will still have to pay the $100 to $500 a year even if senior governments contribute. If they didn't contribute, homeowners would pay more still.

Thomas (Tim) Davis 
Victoria

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LETTER: "NEW SEWAGE SYSTEM NOT AN IMPROVEMENT"

David P. Goodenough
Times Colonist
July 07, 2012

It is astonishing that Capital Regional District chairman Geoff Young is still lobbying to spend nearly $1 billion of taxpayers' money to build a sewage-treatment facility that will introduce a greater negative environmental impact on the area than the present, very efficient system.

With the current system, the impact is virtually undetectable 100 metres from the outfalls. And the detected impact is not all negative. From the CRD's own records, mussels are larger and there is more diverse, healthy plant life within the 100-metre zone.

Now, consider gathering a collection of toxic sewage sludge in tanks near residential areas, parks, industrial areas or beaches as is proposed. The storage facilities are subject to the release of large toxic spills in these areas due to inevitable mechanical failures, high winds, earthquakes, vandalism or outright terrorism. The transport of the collected toxic materials to suitable disposal sites introduces a further negative environmental impact on the population over an even wider area regardless of the transport method eventually chosen.

How can this possibly be better than the current excellent, safe system?

We have spent over $20 million to date and still have not done a rigorous environmental impact study to directly compare the impact on the local population of the present system with the proposed system. Until this assessment is completed and properly reviewed we must stop all other activity on the project.

David P. Goodenough 
Saanich

http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/comment/story.html?id=b96ba5f3-ef4f-434f-bba8-acb6b5041e8c

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LETTER: "PUBLIC SHOULD HAVE SAY ON COSTLY PROJECTS"
 
Bruce Cline
Times Colonist
July 07, 2012

Re: "Sewage-project cash likely within weeks," July 5.

When are our local politicians and their staff going to get it? We are tired of having their costly ideas implemented without first considering the willingness and the capacity of the taxpayer to support them.

For example, take the unnecessary sewage-treatment project that we are about to have forced upon us. This project alone will result in an average tax increase of between $100 and $500 per year per household.

While some may take comfort in the fact that Capital Regional District chairman Geoff Young is well aware of the debate over the scientific necessity of treatment and concerns about the cost, he still supports forgetting the science and concerns over money, and insists on moving ahead without first stopping to consult with those who will be forced to pay the toll.

This is the kind of attitude that all three levels of government are displaying and it has got to stop. It's time for politicians to start living within their budgets, and if they think they need more, bring a business case to their constituents for approval instead of simply ignoring the public and raising our taxes yet again.

Bruce Cline
Victoria

http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/comment/story.html?id=491fc4dd-03a5-4e29-afe4-59b9fcdafd73

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GEORGIA STRAIT ALLIANCE COMMUNITY ATLAS - OUR 2 SEWAGE OUTFALLS

Here is how the GSA's Community Atlas explains our 2 sewage outfalls:


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