Voluntary Planning

Your Vision:
Increased biodiversity through increased density of natural/historic Acadian forests. Mineral extraction done to world class standards using zero local water and outputting zero effluent into the water table or waterways. Reduced clear cutting especially within 2.5km of any waterway containing fish at any time of the year. Arch style culverts over any waterway containing fish at any time of the year to maintain the natural streambed unlike concrete or steel culverts might. Parks should protect historical recreation and hunting uses and balance the need for recreation. Recreation should balance ATV use with human powered pursuits such as canoeing, kayaking and hiking. We have world class hiking at Advocate, world class canoing in Keji/Tobeatic and elsewhere. We have world class kayaking along hundreds if not thousands of kilometers of coastline.. but only if you can get to it. Parks should continue to expand on opportunities in place today and lead us toward world class levels of access to the opportunities already mentioned. Continue with the review on ATV usage. These machines are wonderful in the right place. A wetland is not the right place.

Strengths:
The biggest strength is the opportunity. We have trees today and if we manage them we'll have trees tomorrow.. not in 50 years as will happen if we clear cut them all. Not in 10000 years if we clear cut them and carry all the biowaste off to an incinerator. Leave the slash in the woods. Cut with smaller machines. Cut in the winter. Cut by hand and haul with smaller machines. Prices will only go up. Let's cut at a steady pace to give steady work to as many Nova Scotians as possible. Biodiversity is key to future success of our natural history. Who wants a forest full of three kinds of trees and seven birds? Not me. I'll pay more for a 2x4 if it's been cut in a fashion that doesn't heavily impact those birds and natural trees. As for mining... we can get stuff out of the ground without wrecking the planet. We have moved away from mercury based gold mining so there's no reason to think we can't mine gold today without throwing tailings into any waterway either actively or accidentally. Folks travel a long way to enjoy parks and natural spaces. I travel to NL, BC, ON, PQ, and elsewhere in Canada and Around the world to ski, ride my bike, canoe and just sit under a tree and stare at the view. We need more of that not less. Let's look at fish and fowl as our benchmark. If we do something and we end up with more trout, salmon, warblers, robins and such not we're doing it right. If we end up with fewer then we're doing it wrong.

Barriers and Issues:
Increased consumption of almost everything. Land, resources, time, etc. Our communities grow bigger and so do our houses. We drive more and walk less. Global warming has a growing affect as does the pressure from within and without to grab scenic land as fast as possible. On the other side is our desire for cheap 2x4's and three PCs each full of rare minerals surrounded in hydrocarbons. Balancing these pressures will determine our success.

Community's Priorities:
More green space. In halifax that means more access to salt water for small craft and walking. The space between hammonds plains and timberly is a huge greenspace that should be protected as used as a vast urban park. At the very least it should be modelled after great green cities such as ottawa and, believe it or not, Paris. Mining is easy since i don't see too many prospectors crawling through my hedge. That doesn't mean that i'm not afraid of losing my favourite trout stream due to siltation. The bike trails in long lake park and others is an amazing success story. I used to live near there and loved to walk and ride in it. I've moved away from it closer to downtown and i'm glad it's still there for somebody else to enjoy. I'm not an ATVer but they need a spot to play safely. A really big spot actually. Not too far from town either. Give them their space. Let them use it and maintain it. And keep them from destroying something they may want to enjoy in the future. The current proportion of parks that seem to be part of new developments is little on the low side. One small park for several miles of road as part of The Breakers on the Herring Cover Rd seems a bit low to me.

Guiding the health and sustainability:
Again go back to the creatures that live there. If we do things and more creatures appear then we're doing it right. If fish die or birds fly away or furry critters vanish then we're doing something wrong.

Additional Comments:
Beware the strongest voice... industry is good at what it does. That's why they stay in business. I work for a large company and we are pretty powerfull. Should out opinion matter most? Probably not. Should the pulp-n-paper industry get all that they want? no. Should the mining companies do what they want where they want any way they want? no. Am i a crank? no. I'm just some guy who took the time to fill out this form and provide my honest opinion. I enjoy the wilderness whether i'm days back on the Tobeatic or i'm listening to a woodpecker make a booty call in the tree on my lawn... and i want to see more of it, not less. Thanks for asking for and listening to my thoughts. -Jamie