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Honourable John Gerretson,
Minister of the Environment,
135 St. Clair Avenue West,
Toronto, ON M4V 1P5
Tel: 416-325-4000 1-800-565-4923
email: jgerretsen@liberal.ola.org
November 17, 2009
I am writing to express concern over a plan to divert water from Millbrook, Ontario to a development project in nearby Fraserville, Ontario. Originally, the development was to rely on local water sources. Assessments of the area stated there was enough water to go ahead with development. Now, it appears that local source is no longer considered sufficient, and the local council wants to push ahead with a new plan to build a pipeline that will take water from wells in Millbrook and transport it to the planned development in Fraserville that is partially begun.
There are two major concerns about this. One, that there will not be enough water to support demand. Neighbouring areas where many residents use wells for their water may be on the hook to dig new wells (a costly procedure) or be forced to join up to a municipal water infrastructure (which many rural-residential residents would perfer not to do).
Secondly, the cost to build the pipeline is supposed to be paid for by revenue from sales of building lots sold and taxes generated in the new Fraserville development. Opposed residents point out that the area is not a very nice spot to have a subdivision (due to its proximity to a race track, casino, noisy highways etc.) nor is it likely to sell better than current homes already for sale in Peterborough and Millbrook that have better available services and infrastructure. So, the cost of pipeline would likely fall to the taxpayers if the development does not generate the revenue that council says they expect it to.
Personally, I find that this entire development represents an outdated model. It is sprawl. Though many residents have always opposed this development from the outset, it is felt that the plan to divert water provides an important opportunity to requestion the Fraserville Development and bring it to a halt. The local government here has a reputation for secretiveness, and has tried to often to ignore their critics and keep less active citizens uninformed. One example of this is their regular practice of holding council meetings on weekday afternoons at 1 pm, when most people are at work. Media coverage of what goes on in these meetings is sparce.
I would like to see another round of assessments done to ensure that the water diversion project will not impact residents in Millbrook or surrounding areas. This is a great place where we live, and it would be a shame to see a vital resource -- fresh water -- being plundered to help fuel development that is wasteful and unnecessary.
Sincerely,
Michelle Watson
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