Click below for the youtube I made with Mark D'Arcy -
Here's the story -
NEWS RELEASE FOLLOWS:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ATTENTION: NEWS EDITORS
PROTECTED WETLANDS UNDER SEIGE IN NEW BRUNSWICK
Fredericton Resident in Provincial Court to protect Regent Street Bog
The future of infilling of this designated Provincially Significant Wetland will be decided in Provincial Court as a resident uses his legal right to proceed with a private prosecution against one of the owners of this wetland.
Fredericton, N.B., Canada February 13, 2009 –
On Monday, February 16th at 9:30 AM, a concerned Fredericton citizen will be continuing his private prosecution in Fredericton Provincial Court against RAR Properties Inc. for the infilling of Regent Street Bog last summer. A total of four (4) charges are expected to be read by Judge Graydon Nicholas to RAR Properties Inc.
Mark D'Arcy of Fredericton, New Brunswick, says that he had no option but to go to Provincial Court. "After considerable media attention last summer, and after personal pleas to Attorney General T.J. Burke of New Brunswick, and Environment Minister Roland Haché to intervene and enforce the Order in Council and our environmental legislation that protect this wetland, the infilling of Regent Street Bog went unchallenged by the Province of New Brunswick."
Michel DesNeiges, a lawyer with the New Brunswick Environmental Law Society, will be representing Mark D'Arcy.
"Too many groups and government departments have worked to protect and preserve this beautiful ecosystem", says Mark D'Arcy. "The special legal protection afforded this Provincially Significant Wetland was the result of numerous studies by botany and wildlife scientists and organizations, Environment Canada, NB Department of Environment, and NB Department of Natural Resources."
Wetlands comprise only 4% of the land coverage in New Brunswick. They are very critical pieces of our environment, our wildlife habitat, and our flood control. The Regent Street Bog is the headwater to the large Corbett Brook March, part of Fredericton's watershed that covers the huge forested wetlands of the UNB Woodlot Forest. This huge catchment area is situated at the top of the hill, overlooking Fredericton and Lincoln in the valley below. "Our wetlands are priceless. Nature does for free what cities need most: flood control, groundwater recharge, the storage and purification of water, habitats for birds and animals, recreation, and tourism," says Mark D'Arcy. "Developers need to understand that they must work together with the public to protect them."
"All homeowners in downtown valley of southside Fredericton should be very concerned what happens to these wetlands at the top of the hill," says D'Arcy. "These wetlands are our insurance policy against the severe rain events and increased winter runoff due to climate change. Without forested wetlands working as natural sponges, rainwater capture and run-off control will be seriously compromised. Taxpayers should not have to pay for any attempt to replace the natural function of these wetlands with manmade pipe and retention pond infrastructure. And since an acre of forested wetland can absorb a million to a million-and-a-half gallons of rainwater, no amount of tax dollars can replace what nature is now doing for free."
"The infilling of the Regent Street Bog is a dangerous precedent to wetland protection here in Fredericton and in New Brunswick," says D'Arcy. "If the public does not take a stand on the protection of this wetland, the other 3 property owners of Regent Street Bog may come forward and ask for the same exemptions on Regent Street Bog. This would set a bad precedent for the protection of the Regent Street Bog and the other wetlands in the UNB Woodlot."
"If we lose Regent Street Bog, officially designated a Provincially Significant Wetland, the other wetlands in the UNB Woodlot Forest don't stand a chance.", concludes D'Arcy.
For more information, contact:
Mark D'Arcy Fredericton, New Brunswick Tel: (506) 454-5119 (home) Tel: (506) 450-8005 (work) E-mail: markandcaroline@gmail.com
I don't know much about this issue but here it is!!!
From what I'm told? The people in that area don't want the new building in their area.
The meeting is set for next week.
To All,
The John Howard Society of Fredericton Inc. will be having a Drop-In Information Session on February 18/09 at the Northside Seniors Center (112 Johnston Avenue), from 5:30 to 7:30 PM.
Please come and find out about our proposed project for 294-296 Main Street as well as other up-to-date information with regard to our agency and the programs and services we currently bring to the community.