By the time this article, continued from last week, rolls off the press, the council of East Luther Grand Valley, if thinking, should have and probably will have, turned down Orica’s request to renew an expired temporary permit for a 3.95-acre explosive storage satellite site with intentions to expand to a 12- acre footprint.
But it is my hope that you will stick both articles on your refrigerator door as a gentle reminder to all those whom you see in your mirror each morning, as well as all who visit, why it is important to get up, get out, and toddle off to vote on election day. I again continue to quote the words of one, but the thoughts of many:
“East Luther is not a refuge for a corporation with such a poor international reputation. It is home to a significant wetland and water resource. It is a residential and agricultural community. Failure for this company is financial; failure for us is the loss of our way of life, maybe our homes, maybe our health, maybe our family, and yes, even loss of money.
“This company is not a people. They will not keep or spend the majority of their profits here. They will not bury their dead here. Maybe ours? But they do want to risk our future for their benefit, and the future is not ours to gamble with.
“It is a sociopath that risks their neighbours’ water, homes, lives, finances, without conscience. That is not a good citizen in the sense I have always tried to be. Please ask this company and relay the answer to us all here what they think of the truck accident near Walden, Ontario, on August 5, 1998, how large this explosion was in the chronology of Canadian explosion accidents, and what company owned the truck.
“Yesterday, April 13, started for me when I was awakened by a Class 8 truck at 2:50am and again by a tanker delivery at 11pm. This company may offer good stock prices but they are obviously morally bankrupt. No residents can co-exist with this level of corporate culture. No resident will benefit from 24 hour per day lights, noise, and risk. No amount of engineering prowess can eliminate the risk of being on a vulnerable and inappropriate site.
“Say no to this project based on the poor, incomplete information from which you cannot assume the risks. You gave the company twice the amount of time they requested to provide what was supposed to be already done. This company has not shown good conduct, and to approve it would set an unhealthy precedent for the municipality and community planning in general. The facility is easily disassembled and moved the same as it arrived.
“Generations before us were people with hard lives on those fields. An aboriginal village was there. We live hard lives in a harsh country here, and this is not the reward I had in mind. My dad was a man that had seen the Great Depression, wars, change, challenges, but always had principles.
“You all know what the morally right decision is. Show me what kind of men amongst men you are. We are all watching and I want to see what kind of men I live amongst. If you stand behind us, we will stand behind you because we are standing on what we stand for.”
So there you have it, folks, lock, stock, and both barrels. There is no need for me to put a signature behind that presentation. All of you who were there at that April 14 meeting know exactly who the author is. Need I suggest that this is the one whom you should all be jockeying into the position of Mayor of East Luther Grand Valley council?
When eventually tired of the position, there will be two boys with excellent attitude and qualifications ready to prove that there is nothing detrimental with having a far sighted younger person wearing the mayor’s chain of office.
Take care, ‘cause we care.
barrie@barriehopkins.ca
519-843-4544