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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: HALIFAX JUNE 27, 2000 Sierra Club Says Point Pleasant Park Task Force is Moving Too Quickly The Chebucto Group of the Sierra Club of Canada, representing members in Atlantic Canada, says that the reasons put forward for the wholesale cutting of spruce in Point Pleasant Park do not warrant massive cutting of trees at this time. "From the information we have gathered from scientists who have spent time in the park studying the longhorn beetle over the last few weeks, it is our view that it is inappropriate to clear-cut the park's spruce at this time", said Roger Davies, chair of the Conservation Committee of the local group of the Sierra Club of Canada. Knowledgeable researchers, the Club points out, have not located the numbers of European Brown Spruce Beetles, Tetropium fuscum, that the task-force claims to pose such an immediate huge threat to the well-being of the park. And there are many factors affecting the stress on the trees, not just an alleged killing of live trees by this beetle. "All the evidence suggests," said executive director of the SCC, Elizabeth May, "that there has been an over-reaction to the issue of tree health in the park. This is a very difficult issue, and it is clear that opposing viewpoints are the result of conflicting information and a lack of certainty about the behaviour of this exotic species. We are persuaded that even those those advocating a cut we oppose are operating with good intentions." The Club is calling for a no-cut policy now, with further research done by specialists who have more direct experience with the beetles' actual behaviour in the park. "There needs to be a full consultation with European experts who have had extensive experience with this beetle," says Helen Lofgren, Conservation Committee member. It appears, the club is saying, that the task force has not made best use of the expertise that exists in Halifax and elsewhere, and it is their responsibility to the people of Halifax and to all Nova Scotians to do so. The Sierra Club is fully supportive of the effort of the Friends of Point Pleasant to have a moratorium on cutting in place now, until further detailed and careful study is done. contact: Roger Davies 457-4351 daisies@chebucto.ns.ca ------------------------- -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- The preceding message was posted on the Sustainable Maritimes mailing list (sust-mar). http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/lists/sust-mar -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Sponsors: Chebucto Community Net http://www.chebucto.ns.ca Sierra Club - Chebucto Group http://www.sierraclub.ca Volunteer moderator: Paul Falvo mailto:sust-mar-owner@chebucto.ns.ca PLEASE SEND MESSAGES TO SUST-MAR IN PLAIN TEXT ONLY MESSAGES CONTAINING HTML (MIME) CANNOT BE POSTED
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