The Editor,
Re: "Who's Colony Farm for?", Green Scene, Tri-City News, July 1.
Columnist Elaine Golds highlighted the choices, between agricultural, wild natural, and human activity land use, in Metro Vancouver's so-called sustainability plan for Colony Farm Regional Park.
The same tensions exist at the regional level for Metro Vancouver's new regional growth accommodation strategy. Several municipalities strongly opposed the plan. Metro Vancouver, with the province's assistance, is twisting their arms to accept it.
The basic problem, in both cases, is that the land use plans only pay lip-service to the principles of sustainability. After stating the mantra, the regional plan advocates business-as-usual population growth and land development for the next 30 years.
With the twin challenges of peak oil and climate change on our doorstep, we desperately need true leadership to transform Cascadia for a sustainable future.
The squabble over the park plan at Colony Farm Regional Park is a microcosm of this important bioregional issue. We need to get the regional plan right first; and then the park plan will evolve from it.
D. B. Wilson
Port Moody
