[All] Fw: Public comment re: ER number 013-4528

Fri Jan 18 19:53:41 EST 2019

 Hi folks
If you want to give a comment, email esaguelph at ontario.ca 
Thanks
Lulu 

   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Lanteigne <water.lulu at yahoo.ca>To: esaguelph at ontario.ca <esaguelph at ontario.ca>Sent: ‎Friday‎, ‎January‎ ‎18‎, ‎2019‎ ‎07‎:‎51‎:‎15‎ ‎PM‎ ‎ESTSubject: Public comment re: ER number 013-4528

On April 2, 2015, the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry issued a permit under clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act, 2007 to Schlegel Urban Development. The permit authorized Schlegel Urban Development to kill, harm, harass, capture, possess, and transport Jefferson Salamander and damage and destroy approximately 4 hectares of habitat of Jefferson Salamander for the purpose of constructing a subdivision, stormwater pond, asphalt trail and maintenance road in the City of Kitchener, Regional Municipality of Waterloo. 
I am writing to oppose the permit application for the following reasons.
Ontario's Source Water Protection Act allows for protection zones immediately around wellheads and intakes but there are no laws to protect primary recharge outside those areas which gathers the water that feeds the wells. To address this issue I have previously used protection of Jefferson Salamanders as a means to stop bad projects from ruining our local water supplies in Waterloo Region. One such example of my success with this approach is an Ontario Municipal Board appeal I launched, file PL071044. The case was settled at the Experts meeting where I got the experts of the developers, to sign off on the fact their studies were insufficient. My senior hydrogeologist secured mapping while my Fish and Salamander expert, Dr. Dean Fitzgerald of Cornell University, helped me sure the rest of the concessions.  
I know for a fact that salamanders are excellent indicators of primary recharge because because they breath through their skin and require moist habitats and loose substraits.  They are sensitive to surface toxins and are also an indicator of excellent water quality. We really need good water in Waterloo Region to dilute residential contaminates, pesticides, road salts etc. or we will loose local wells and the ability go grow as a community. 
Just last week we had a spill of jet fuel on the 401 that closed multiple wells in Cambridge Ontario. We have booms on tributaries of the Grand River which is a primary water supply for downstream communities.  Now is not the time to squander clean water supplies. There is never a good time to do that. https://www.therecord.com/news-story/9128274-water-wells-closed-in-cambridge-following-jet-fuel-spill-on-hwy-401/

We can't afford to loose more wells but our area is at high risk because we are so dependent on groundwater. In the attachments you will see that topography is not enough to protect our aquifers. It is vitally important we protect our wetlands and source water areas from road salts and contaminates because if we don't protect it, it comes at a significant costs. The values given in the chart I provide  are purely the cost of potable water. It doesn't count the value of the function of it's use which could be for anything from growing crops, providing for industry or simply to sustain growth. 
In my view this application and all others that threaten to ruin habitats of Jefferson Salamanders are by their very nature economically costly to public and it provides no net benefit for either the salamanders or the taxpayers when you consider the natural capital assets we lose in allowing development in unsustainable places like marshlands and vernal pond areas. It only facilitates long term economic loses by way of reduced potable water. 
Just clearing an area of vegetation and compressing the soil is enough to ruin the function of primary recharge. This increases the amount of stormwater runoff and contaminates heading into tributaries, the Grand River and downstream water supplies. It also serves to increase localized flood risks. Every time we put development in the area where water normally infiltrates, it must be displaced somehow and somewhere and that costs taxpayers a great deal of money.  
Stormwater ponds can hold volumes but it doesn't guarantee good water quality. When open ponds are available it draws in geese with high nitrate and high phosphate wastes and due to lack of predation by areas near subdivision this creates issues of algae blooms. We have ignored this issue for so long we are losing Lake Erie as a future potable water supply. Add to that zebra mussel issue because the intakes would clog quickly if they are not constantly cleaned and again this is costly to taxpayers. The same mussel is costing us millions along Lake Ontario Nuclear power plants. 
The algae issues are not getting better. https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/01/18/epa-lake-erie-pollution/1043683001/
So the best chance Waterloo Region has to survive in the age of climate change, is to let the water get in the ground where the natural recharge areas exist. Do not disrupt these cycles. The Jefferson Salamander as an indicator species for these locations that are vital to protect.
It's time we get to the word NO. All the net benefit we give to this animal will not replace the recharge areas we destroy in the process. Protect water quality water flow, water volumes and flow rates as nature designed it. 
Thank you
Louisette Lanteigne700 Star Flower Ave.Waterloo OntarioN2V 2L2 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: expertminutes.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 959780 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0001.pdf>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: westsidelands.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 190412 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0006.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Dv692-LX0AA382s.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 76593 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0007.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Dv692pAXQAAuh7M.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 72421 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0008.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: DmRIjIKW0AU-1YZ.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 62817 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0009.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: C3HV_7iXAAAC1w_.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 58011 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0010.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: C3HWAyHWgAQ4txV.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 95292 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://gren.ca/pipermail/all_gren.ca/attachments/20190119/096ebbef/attachment-0011.jpg>