hwy. 101, safety, fossile fuel shortages

Date: Thu, 21 Dec 2000 12:46:58 -0400
To: sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca
From: jslakov@TartanNET.ns.ca (Jan Slakov)
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Dear Sust-mar list,

We all know we need to consume less fossile fuel, but so often, we say
"less" but burn more. The Hwy. 101 twinning issue is a case in point. Hwy.
101 is dangerous and there is a serious lobby to get it twinned. Sonja Wood,
singer & Hwy. 101 activist, is even taking Ron Russell to court over the
lack of progress in twinning. 

Me too, I'm no big fan of highway accidents (!) but I feel twinning the 101
is a short-sighted solution. More highways = more cars = more accidents,
pollution, respiratory problems, urban sprawl, etc. And eventually, fossile
fuel shortages and even more extreme weather problems... and lots of people
could die from those things.* 

People from Transport 2000, the EAC and Enviro-Clare have a petition
circulating to propose that safe, more cost-effective alternatives to
twinning the 101 be found. (cf. sust-mar posting: "Hwy. 101 (spending taxes
wisely) of early May)

Our goal is still valid, as the following letters-to-the-editor will show.

all the best, Jan
PS * I put an asterisk by the mention of fossile fuel shortages because a
small newspaper published out of Greenwood, _Discourse & Disclosure_ ran a
front page article consisting of a warning signed by scientists & others
about impending fossile fuel shortages. This little newspaper also has
artilces on ocean health (featuring inshore fishermen opposed to continued
dragger damage of corals off our coasts, etc.) and other issues that could
be of interest to people on this list. You can order a complementary copy
(but I would suggest you send a donation because I want to make sure this
newspaper survives!). Subscriptions are $14 for 6 issues and the next two
issues will include a copy of a BC newspaper called the _Radical Press_. The
address is Discourse & Disclosure, %Sue Potvin, Box 1112, Greenwood, NS BOP
1N0. 

[. . .]

Dear Editor,

An editorial in the Dec. 6 issue of this paper applauded musician and
activist Sonja Wood for her efforts to get Highway 101 twinned. I too
applaud Sonja Wood for her deep caring, but I disagree with the solution she
has chosen to promote. We know there are less damaging ways to prevent
accidents than to invest in a dinosaur technology like more highways.
Highways and motor vehicle transportation are too costly in terms of safety,
money and the environment for us to continue investing in them; they are
doomed, in the long run, to go extinct.

Our priorities should be elsewhere, and it seems most Nova Scotians realize
this. A Chronicle-Herald article of Sept. 20 stated that "61% of Nova
Scotians [are] opposed to twinned highways". People realize that having
money for schools and health care helps save lives and improve quality of
life, and building roads that must be maintained means tieing up government
funds now and into the future.

However, our provincial government seems bent on building more highways. I
notice that despite two letters sent to my MLA Gordon Balser on this issue
(in June and October of this year) I have yet to receive a reply. He has
also neglected to reply to letters written in support of fishermen and
others who want the shoddy offshore oil and gas exploration licencing
proceedures cleaned up. This government has lobbyied Ottawa for money to
twin Highway 101 but did nothing to support the efforts to save the rail
corridor between Windsor Junction and Halifax so it could be developed for
commuter rail. We all know we need to find ways to burn less fossile fuels
but we seem bent on drilling for more, even if we ruin our fisheries in the
process, and even though we know we'll be cold and hungry in the future
unless we prepare now to rely less on fuels that will only go up in price as
we burn them up.

Sonja Wood is not the only person who cares deeply about saving lives. I do
too. I try to find ways to cut my consumption because I know
over-consumption is one of the biggest killers on earth. This year I decided
not to buy another car when mine broke down. Instead, I bought a bicycle and
a trailer for my daughter Sophie and I. Like most mothers, I worry about our
safety, as does my own mother. But, to my delight, my mother is also glad
for us. She knows that our lifestyle is going to keep us really fit!

I would like to thank all the people who see us on the road, mainly between
Weymouth and Church Point, and who watch out for us. Also the people who
drive us around when biking just isn't feasible. And last but not least,
Sophie, who endures (and even enjoys) pedalling in all kinds of weather.
Sophie's attitude is best summed up by her reaction to getting getting
splatted with mud one wet day. We stopped at a Frenchy's and Sophie headed
to the washroom to wash off her face. When she came back she announced that
now she knows why we call them "washrooms"!

Sincerely, Jan Slakov
Weymouth, NS 837-4980


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