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Download Patrick Lucey's Presentation: Creek & Communities- A Freshwater Imperative   Priorities for Shawnigan Taxation always seems to grow whether we like it or not. Society is facing limited resources with unlimited demands. This forces us a community to look at priorities for Shawnigan Lake. Are we able to agree on improvements that are worth the price? In the tax debates to come, as the CVRD works on the 2013 budget, I would like to have our community’s sense of priorities. The main principle for me is that taxes should purchase desired tangible benefits that the community endorses by properly conducted public consultation. So, here are some existing and potential charges on our tax rates for you to consider. I am requesting public feedback to help prioritize the list, and also welcome suggestions for significant matters that may have been missed. Comments can be provided via: E-mail to: bruce@fraserforshawnigan.ca Monthly Director’s Meeting – 1st Monday of each month, 7pm at SLCC Director’s Office upstairs in the Purple Building – Mon, Wed & Fri, 11am-1pm Local Physical Infrastructure • Sewage treatment for Shawnigan Village • Sewage system to replace lakeside septic fields • Sidewalks and connecting trails in Shawnigan Village • Development of a Village Commons on the Elsie Miles property • Development of a public walkway along the Village waterfront • Creating safe cycle routes around the lake Transit Services • Providing local transit services to the West and South of the area • Providing commuter bus service to Victoria via the South end • Developing a Park and Ride at the South end/Malahat Junction • Creating a Park and Ride within the Village area Parks and Trails • Continued acquisition of new parkland • Continued development of regional trails • Development of walking and cycle trails connecting the west and north to the Village • Creation of “Road End” mini parks for public access to the lake • Supporting the existing regional parks e.g. Bright Angel • Possible acquisition of the Kingzett Lake Quarry and surrounding lands as a regional park

 

 

Bruce Fraser
CVRD Regional Director-Shawnigan Lake

September 18, 2012

To All Electoral Area B (Shawnigan Lake) Residents:

I advocated that the Regional District take the initiative by proposing that an early SIA application approval would effectively derail any credible prospect of pursuing a collaborative approach to solving the contaminated soil issues in the Cowichan Regional District and Shawnigan in particular.

The following letter sent to the Minister in late August is what was done at my request.

We are awaiting the Minister's response to this potential solution to the concerns of the Shawnigan public

Sincerely,

Bruce Fraser

 

 

Download a pdf of this document

August 27, 2012

Ministry of Environment
PO BOX 9047 STN PROV GOVT
Room 247, Parliament Buildings
VICTORIA BC  V8W 9E2

 

Attention: Honourable Terry Lake

Dear Minister Lake:

Re:      Contaminated Soils Deposition  in the Cowichan Valley_

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Cowichan Valley Regional District (CVRD) I would like to again express our appreciation for your Ministry working with us to address mutual concerns regarding the deposition of soils within the Regional District.  We do appreciate the efforts of Ministry staff and recognize these are challenging issues.

The CVRD has made it very clear that the contaminated soil facility proposed by South Island Aggregates  (SIA) in the  headwaters of Shawnigan Lake is  an unacceptable threat  to the domestic water supply of over 4500 residents.  While the engineering proposal put forward by SIA may be held by the company to be technically sound, the inevitable long term risks are wholly unacceptable to the public and the CVRD which is a direct water purveyor drawing from Shawnigan Lake.

We believe there is a positive means of preventing what will undoubtedly become a major public issue should the SIA application be approved. The CVRD would like to work with your Ministry to continue the collaboration begun last May after our meeting with you in Victoria.   This collaborative effort could now be extended to conduct a mutual search for  a suitable soil depository site within the Regional District that is not proximate to a public water supply.

Our preference, of course, would be for the SIA application to be denied.  Should this be the case, we recognize that this would still leave government with the problem of waste disposal. As an alternative, we would like to suggest that the decision on the SIA application be put in abeyance for an indefinite period while we pursue the collaborative option.   Should the SIA application be approved before this joint work was to be completed, the credibility of our cooperative stance to this difficult issue may be irreversibly lost for both the Provincial Government and the CVRD.

I would appreciate  the opportunity to meet with  you as soon  as possible to  discuss  this proposal.  Perhaps this approach might be a model for locating future contaminated soil facilities in other parts of the province. Thank you for your consideration. Ms. Allison Nelson, Executive Assistant will be in contact with your office to discuss arrangements.

Thank you,

 

Rob Hutchins, Chair