[All] Fw: Don't cut funding to CELA or other environmental advocacy groups. It's bad for your wallet if you do.

[Lanteigne]

 Hi folks.
CELA's funding is at risk. I sent this quick email off to help save their funding. 
Lulu :0) 

   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Lanteigne <water.lulu at yahoo.ca>To: attorneygeneral at ontario.ca <attorneygeneral at ontario.ca>; minister.mecp at ontario.ca <minister.mecp at ontario.ca>; Catherine Fife - CO <cfife-co at ndp.on.ca>Sent: Monday, July 29, 2019, 10:16:24 p.m. EDTSubject: Don't cut funding to CELA or other environmental advocacy groups. It's bad for your wallet if you do.
 Dear Ministers. 
I have worked with CELA in the past with Ontario Municipal Board case PL071044 regarding the West Side Lands in Waterloo Region. This case involved three new subdivisions and a road extension project that was putting the Greenbrook wells at risk in Waterloo Region. If the project proceeded as planned it would have allowed high levels of road salt into vernal pond habitats of endangered species which also acted as a high water recharge point for this specific well field and creek system. There was a zero threshold to go beyond the salt levels and if the wells were contaminated, it could have resulted in the loss of these wells which represents 5% of our local potable water supply.
I launched the appeal and faced a SLAPP with the developer right away with them wanting to dismiss the case without a hearing. I hired my lawyer and experts and I won my right to a hearing but the funding was gone with the anti slapp legal process. To save money I had to use CELA who assisted my solicitor with articling. I couldn't have afforded the process without them and as it turns out, I won my concessions. It never got to a full hearing. The ruling was settled by the experts minutes which are in the attachments for your reference. You will also see how much tax money we save when we protect the function of the resource in perpetuity.  My case with CELA's help saved Waterloo Region lots of money in the long term costs. The buffers around the creeks were widened and development removed from the capture zones. We secured a check worth the value of the roof runoff system and if it fails to function the city gets to cash that check. If you see the last photo it features a price chart that shows the cost of saving the resource and keep in mind it doesn't include the cost of the function of that water in supporting growth, industries, food production, farming etc. 
There is no growth without a viable water supply. With Climate change, zebra mussels and toxic algae, a pipeline to Lake Erie is not reasonable. Right now in Ontario, our moraines are the best chance we have at protecting our long term economic and physical life support systems. The groundwater systems, made of the unique distribution of aggregates from glacial deposits,  have functioned naturally for free for over 12,000 years. That's proven engineering worth maintaining. You can't buy that kind of reliability and it wouldn't be free if you could. 
I am calling on you to immediately reverse the cuts to CELA's budget. In my view they are a stitch in time that saves nine. For the pittance they get they have, in my view, saved billions of dollars worth of potable water in perpetuity. We need those folks to keep doing the good work to protect our two main ecosystems: One environmental and the other ECOnomic. 

Thank you
Louisette Lanteigne700 Star Flower Ave.Waterloo OntN2V 2L2 

  
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