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"I
think the valley is a good site.
I don't think they should make roads out of it.
And if they do, I feel sorry for Hamilton."
- Westleigh Hopkins, 9 years old, Oakville
November
19, 2003
WHY WALK TO QUEEN'S PARK AND HOW
Dalton
McGuinty’s government is a full partner in the Red
Hill Creek Expressway. If the Niagara Escarpment is dynamited,
half the money will come from the Ontario Liberal government.
If 44,000 trees are clearcut, 22,000 of them will be axed
by contractors paid for by the province.
Dalton
McGuinty’s Liberal party ran on a platform of protecting
greenspace, opposing sprawl and supporting public transit.
They promised a million acre green belt from Niagara Falls
to the eastern reaches of the Oak Ridges Moraine. Over the
past eight years of Tory government, the Liberals have strongly
criticized the degradation of the Niagara Escarpment Commission.
They have argued for proper environmental assessment. They
have demanded protection of Ontario’s waterways. And
they have said they support aboriginal rights. Now they
are the government. Now we get to see if they were serious
and honest in their positions.
The
blasting of the biggest ever hole in the face of the escarpment
makes a mockery of the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development
Act, and the Niagara Escarpment Commission that is supposed
to uphold it. The “permit” being used by the City
of Hamilton is 16-years-old and was issued on the understanding
that there would be no new cut in the escarpment. Under
the Tories, the Niagara Escarpment Commission was too weak
to do anything about this outrage. Will the Liberals let
it happen, and pay for half the dynamite?
The
Tories exempted the expressway from provincial environmental
assessment. Then they joined Hamilton in the $4.5 million
court action to stop a federal environmental assessment.
Will the Liberals silently approve this deliberate circumvention
of the rules established to protect the environment? The
new Liberal environment minister has been asked to review
the 1985 approval in the light of much new evidence. This
evidence includes repeated examples of the City of Hamilton
breaking environmental laws, in particular in relation to
Red Hill Valley. The new Minister has a legal obligation
to consider the request for a review. She has an opportunity
to do the right thing. Will she?
One
of the first acts of the McGuinty government has been to
launch a public enquiry into the killing of Dudley George
at Ipperwash, where he had gone to peacefully protect the
burial grounds of his ancestors. Will McGuinty also act
to protect the burial grounds of the Haundenosaunee peoples
in the Red Hill Valley?
The
province is currently providing $122 million to the expressway
project. Premier McGuinty says the province has a budget
crisis, a deficit of $5.6 billion. Hamilton City Council
says that they have a budget crisis too, and are asking
the province for a bailout. Will Mr. McGuinty have the honesty
to point out their rank hypocrisy, and to suggest that the
$122 million would go a long way toward addressing Hamilton’s
financial problems?
From
bitter experience, the people of Hamilton know that their
municipal government has no qualms about breaking the law
and flouting regulations. The people of Ontario who know
about these activities are shocked. Are Dalton McGuinty
and his ministers also shocked? Are they prepared to make
sure Hamilton follows the rules, or have they decided that
standing up to the gang that runs Hamilton is politically
unwise?
You
are invited to join us on the walk, at the public meetings
along the way, and at Queen’s Park on Monday morning
where perhaps we will find the answers to these reasonable
questions. You can also
WALK THE WALK FROM THE VALLEY TO QUEEN'S PARK. Red Hill
Valley Roadshow!
ITINERARY
— Hamilton to Toronto, Ontario, Thursday November 20
to Monday November 24, 2003.
Thurs.
Nov 20
10
am |
Depart
from Mud Street Parking lot at Mount Albion; walk
to Burlington (end at Burlington Baptist Church 2225
New Street). |
| 7:30
pm |
Evening
event at Burlington Baptist Church, 2225 New Street,
featuring videos from the struggle to save the valley. |
| 10
pm |
Overnight
at Appleby United Church (4407 Spruce) with breakfast
courtesy of IDEA Burlington. |
Fri
Nov 21
10
am |
Depart
from Appleby United Church (4407 Spruce), walk to
the Oakville Community Centre for Peace, Ecology and
Human Rights (148 Kerr Street). |
| 7:30
pm |
Videos
and discussion at the Oakville Community Centre for
Peace, Ecology and Human Rights (148 Kerr Street). |
Sat
Nov 22
10
am |
Depart
148 Kerr Street walk to Mississauga. Night off Saturday,
no events. |
Sun
Nov 23 10
am |
Depart
Mississauga to Toronto.
|
| 7:30
pm |
Sunday
evening event in Toronto at the Religious Society
of Friends (Quaker) Meeting House, 60 Lowther. Guest
speaker, Don McLean, Chair Friends of Red Hill Valley,
plus videos from the struggle to save the valley by
the Red Hill Video Collective. |
Mon
Nov 24
10am |
Walk from Friends Meeting House to Queen's Park for
11:00 a.m. |
Walkers
are welcome to join for all or part of the distance, and
any of the meetings. For more information, contact Rae at
rachelle.mitchell@sympatico.ca.
Contact
Information for the Liberal government:
Hon.
Leona Dombrowsky,
Phone: 416-314-6790 Fax: 416-314-6748
E-Mail: leona.dombrowsky@ene.gov.on.ca
Hon. Leona Dombrowsky
Minister of the Environment
12th Floor, 135 St Clair Ave W
Toronto , ON M4V 1P5
Hon. David J. Ramsay,
Phone: 416-314-2301 Fax: 416-314-2216
E-Mail: david_ramsay-mpp@ontla.ola.org
Hon. David Ramsay
Minister of Natural Resources
Whitney Block, 6th Floor, Rm 6630
99 Wellesley St W.
Toronto,
ON M7A 1W3
Hon.
Dalton McGuinty
Phone: 416-325-1941 Fax: 416-325-7578
E-Mail: dalton_mcguinty-mpp@ontla.ola.org
Premier Dalton McGuinty
Legislative Bldg., Rm 281, Queen's Park
Toronto, ON M7A 1A1
Note:
Mailed letters and faxes are more likely to obtain attention
than emails. It is always helpful to ask for a response
and to include specific questions, if possible. Contact
information for all members of the Ontario legislature can
be found at http://olaap.ontla.on.ca/mpp/contact.jsp
so you can cc your message to your MPP, other Party leaders,
etc.
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