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May
1999 Newsletter
Open
Letter from McMaster University Faculty
The
following is an open letter to the federal Minister
of Fisheries and Oceans and the federal Minister of
the Environment from a group of over 110 McMaster
University faculty members, and other university personnel.
The
current plans by the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth
include construction of an expressway through the Red
Hill Valley. Beyond the expense to regional taxpayers,
this would be costly in terms of habitat loss, air quality,
water quality, quality of life for residents neighbouring
the valley, economic decline of the downtown core, and
suburban sprawl.
The
undersigned members of the faculty of McMaster University
have serious concerns about the plans to construct an
expressway corridor in the Red Hill Valley. We believe
that this project should be thoroughly re-examined before
any more public dollars are spent on it. The benefits
of the expressway are uncertain, and they must be weighed
against the known and potential costs in order to determine
if the project is in the public interest. The claimed
need for the expressway should be re-examined in light
of our current knowledge, and other alternatives should
be considered including alternative locations, different
transportation options, as well as the option of using
scarce resources for more important and worthwhile endeavours.
The
following list of concerns suggests that there is
compelling evidence that the environmental, social
and financial costs of the valley expressway are unacceptable.
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As
planned, this highway will cost over $200 million,
plus maintenance costs. Much of the construction
cost and all of the maintenance costs will be imposed
on local property taxpayers at a time when Hamilton-Wentworth
taxation levels already substantially exceed those
of neighbouring communities (Clayton Research 1999),
and essential expenditures on the rehabilitation
of an ageing sewer and water system have been unwisely
postponed (Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth
1998, 1999).
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The
valley expressway will create a nine-kilometre shortcut
between the 403 and the QEW and will divert a significant
portion of provincial through traffic onto a regional
roadway running through residential neighbourhoods.
Thousands of heavy trucks, including American vehicles
using the shortcut between Detroit and Buffalo (401-403-QEW),
which make no contribution to local taxes, will
nevertheless impose additional maintenance, noise
and pollution costs on regional property taxpayers.
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The
population of lower Hamilton has dropped by nearly
50,000 in the past 25 years (Census of Canada, 1971,
1996) with dramatic consequences for the downtown
business, public transit and property values. The
expressway appears likely to accelerate these trends
and generate a further cycle of suburban sprawl
and its associated costs.
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Pollution from the expressway will have a negative
impact on the already compromised air quality of
valley neighbourhoods and appears certain to result
in significant effects on human health (Pengelly
1998, McCarry 1998, Muir 1998).
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Increased vehicle traffic will cause significant
noise pollution, increasing levels by as much as
20 decibels (RWDI 1998). This is equivalent to noise
energy levels being increased more than 100-fold
over ambient.
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The Red Hill Valley passes through some of the most
vulnerable neighbourhoods in Canada with "low-income"
households making up almost 50% in at least one
adjacent census tract (Census of Canada 1996). The
expressway will reduce the air quality, increase
the noise pollution, and pave over much of the playground
of the children of these neighbourhoods, largely
eliminating their already limited exposure to the
natural world.
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Red
Hill Valley is one of the largest urban parks
in Canada, and is east Hamilton's only significant
greenspace. The expressway and its four valley
interchanges will carve this area into over
25 pieces, compromising the existence of and
potential for a diverse and rich watershed (Dougan
and Associates 1998). The valley connects the
escarpment to the lakeshore, currently providing
an important wildlife corridor, especially for
migrating birds (Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth
1994, MacDonald 1996). Fragmentation will severely
damage this function and force the loss of area-sensitive
species that require a minimum area of forest
habitat exceeding the size of the remaining
forest fragments.
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Expressway construction will disturb the Red Hill
aquatic community, and the increased paved surface
area of the valley and traffic-related pollutants
will have negative consequences for both the creek
and for the cleanup of Hamilton Harbour (Bay Area
Restoration Council 1995, McCarry 1997).
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The removal of over 40,000 trees (Dougan 1998) and
their replacement with pavement and vehicles will
sacrifice an important urban climate moderator and
considerable carbon sink, and will result in further
increases in Canadian emissions of atmospheric greenhouse
gases.
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The
Hamilton area has an unenviable legacy of environmental
degradation, which has negatively affected the health
and quality of life of its residents. This legacy,
both real and perceived, now also imposes a substantial
handicap on the economic prospects of the region,
discouraging the information-based, advanced technology,
service industries and other expanding business
sectors from locating in this area. It seems certain
that the negative impacts of the expressway, in
sharp contrast to environmental improvements due
to the Hamilton Harbour Remedial Action Plan, would
worsen this situation.
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The
fact that this project has generated debate and
controversy for nearly half a century suggests that
it may be seriously flawed (Peace 1998). The Hamilton
area cannot afford another costly mistake. We should
not throw good money after bad. Everyone should
welcome the full, thorough and independent public
review of the project promised by the federal government's
environmental assessment process.
Bay
Area Restoration Council. 1995. Supporting Document
regarding the request for an Environmental Assessment
of the proposed Red Hill Creek Expressway. 11 pp.
Census
of Canada 1971. Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area.
Census
of Canada 1996. Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area.
Clayton
Research Associates Limited. 1999. The Hamilton-Wentworth
Economy: Profile and Prospects. Prepared for the Regional
Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth. 69 pp.
Dougan
& Associates. 1998. Red Hill Creek Expressway Impact
Assessment. Terrestrial Resources Technical Report.
Prepared for the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth.
21 pp + app.
Hamilton
Region Conservation Authority. 1996. Biological Inventory
of the Red Hill Valley. 235 pp.
Macdonald,
Colin. 1996. "Assessment of the Avifauna of the Red
Hill Valley" in HRCA, Biological Inventory of the Red
Hill Valley, pp. 121-188.
McCarry,
Brian E. 1996. Red Hill Creek as a Source of Genotoxins
to Hamilton Harbour. Presentation to the Hamilton Region
Conservation Authority Water Quality Technical Workshop,
February 27, 1996.
McCarry,
Brian E. 1998. Comments and Observations on the Consulting
Reports on the Red Hill Creek Expressway. Submission
to the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth,
2 pp.
Muir,
T. 1998. Comments on the RWDI Draft Air Quality Assessment
for the North South Red Hill Creek Expressway. Submission
to the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth,
10 pp.
Peace,
Walter (editor). 1998. From Mountain to Lake: The Red
Hill Creek Valley. W.L. Griffin Printing Ltd., Hamilton.
256 pp.
Pengelly,
L.D. 1998. Review of the Draft Summary Report of the
Impact Assessment and Design Process of the Red Hill
Creek Expressway North-South Section. Submission to
the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, 2 pp.
Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth 1994. Towards
a Regional Greenlands System. 36 pp + app.
Regional
Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth 1998. 1998-2007 Capital
Budget Business Plan. 56 pp.
Regional
Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth 1999. Advisory Committee
on Competitive Municipal Taxation Policy. Overheads
from a presentation on March 25, 1999. 31 pp + app.
RWDI.
Traffic noise impact assessment North-South section
Red-Hill Creek Expressway, for the Region of Hamilton-Wentworth,
June 1998.
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©
Friends of Red Hill Valley 1991-2005
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