I am neither an environmental scientist nor a future teller, but rather I describe myself as one who would rather be safe than sorry gambling on my grandchildren’s future water supply on P.E.I.
A recent article in The Guardian states that our new water act still has not decided to keep a moratorium in place on deep-water, high-capacity wells. As a past member of P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association, who participated as a member in front of a government committee two years ago, we understood – or thought we did – that it was a given, to keep the moratorium in place. What happened since the minority Conservative government took over?
I say, wow! Do our Island managers not see what is happening with climate change everywhere in the world? Weather patterns are quickly changing and not for the better. For example, look at Australia. Two years of drought and now fires for the last four months. Some saying destroying 15 – 20 per cent of the entire country. Not to mention a billion animals killed.
OK, the report says that P.E.I. groundwater recharge can afford more high-capacity wells using past rainfall and snowfall precipitations, called normal rates. What if normal rates change, and change quickly as they did in Australia?
Have these people of government ever pondered the possibility that starting next summer and extending for three years, P.E.I. has half or less rainfall? Long ago, we learned that P.E.I. has only one groundwater resource, renewed by this one only way, rain or snow. If that is halved, we are and will be in trouble as is now, let alone more pressure on the resource by increasing output. In closing, can we as Islanders allow our minority government to toss the dice on our grandchildren’s and others’ future water supply? Just a major thought.
Peter Boertien,
Past member, P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association
Souris