To: Judy Brownoff, Chair, Capital Regional District ( CRD ) Core Area Liquid Waste ManagementCommittee ( CALWMC )
From: The Haro Woods Protection Group
Subject: Haro Woods Consultation Process
We are writing to you regarding the CRD’s planned Open House scheduled for Queenswood Retreat Centre on April 20, on the subject of the proposed siting of a sewage treatment plant in Haro Woods.We note that the stated purpose of this Open House is to entertain residents’ opinions with respect to changing the proposed siting of this facility from the current location which is owned by the CRD to an adjoining property which is owned by the District of Saanich.
In our view, as currently conceived, this meeting is an unproductive use of time and resources, as it misses the essential point, which is that more than one thousand people from Cadboro Bay and elsewhere have already signed a petition urging the rezoning of Haro Woods and its designation as parkland. In other words, the overwhelming weight of public opinion vis a vis Haro Woods or any part of it is adamantly opposed to using it for sewage treatment. Moreover, our group includes a number of engineers and other experts with extensive backgrounds and experience in the areas of sewage treatment and other large infrastructure projects, who after studying your plans in detail have concluded that Haro Woods is both unnecessary and unsuitable as a site for a sewage treatment facility.
This being the case, if the CRD still wishes to engage in public consultation on Haro Woods, we suggest that both the theme for the meeting and its format be radically altered to reflect the relevant issues and concerns. Only then can the CRD be said to have met the province’s requirement of public consultation in order for infrastructure funding to be obtained. We take the provincial prerequisite of prior consultation to mean, in effect, ‘meaningful’ consultation, and not just going through the motions. And we strongly suspect that in a court of law the standard for meaningful consultation would be not just that the public is ‘listened to’ but that our views are highly valued and ultimately incorporated into and reflected in the overall liquid waste management plan. On this score, much work remains to be done, and the impending Queenswood meeting provides an opportunity to redress the balance and set therecord straight.
Accordingly, we propose that the theme for the Open House be revised to deal with the central issue, which is whether there is need for a sewage treatment plant in Haro Woods in the first place. This being the case, we feel a more appropriate format for the open house than the one you propose would have the CRD make a formal presentation to those in attendance each hour on the hour from 3 PM to8PM, in which a justification for your Haro Woods plans is presented, with an opportunity for attendees to subsequently ask questions, make brief statements, etc. An open microphone should be provided for this purpose, and a written transcript of the proceedings posted on the CRD web site. We suggest this format based on our experience with previous CRD sewage information sessions, particularly the Saanich East- North Oak Bay ( SENOB ) consultations of May 2009, where the intent appeared to be to ‘inform’ and not to consult. No one reading the CRD’s summary report of those consultations with an open mind can doubt for one moment that, contrary to the position taken by the CRD, the vast majority of residents are opposed to citing a treatment plant in Haro Woods. See especially Appendices 3 and 4of this document:http://crd.bc.ca/reports/corearealiquidwastem_/2009_/07july22_/20090722agendaitem07-2/2009-07-22AgendaItem07EHQ09-78AppendixASENOBPublicConsultationSummaryReport.pdf.
In summary, we are asking no less than that the CRD respect the fact that a very large number of CRD residents are opposed to any form of treatment facility anywhere in Haro Woods, and that we are not interested in participating in a process that only shifts a plant from one area of this precious woodland to another. Accordingly, you are respectfully requested to revise the purpose and format for the upcoming Queenswood open house, as outlined above, so as to accommodate these concerns.
Sincerely,
Gerald Graham,
Victoria resident, on behalf of the Haro Woods Protection Group