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Re: Wastewater treatment project needs review
The North Shore Wastewater Plant is a project of the Regional Sewer and Drainage District of Greater Vancouver and Metro Vancouver. So why are residents of the City and District of West Vancouver and North Vancouver going to be stuck with full annual cost recovery of $725 in property tax bills for this project?
Residents and visitors to the south side of Burrard Inlet would likely strongly oppose a less expensive wastewater plant that provided a lower level of treatment. The current project improves the quality of the receiving waters that will receive the discharge from the new plant. Putting $10 or $25 on all property tax bills across the Lower Mainland should be an equitable way to recoup the cost of capital.
At the same time, authorities should demand restitution from the original contractor, which should be applied to the current project to reduce its net cost.
Derek Wilson, Port Moody
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It’s no longer a city to be proud of.
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Re: Japan shows the way in public security
Thank you, Tasha Kheiriddin, for the wonderful column about your trip to Japan. We have a lot to learn.
I am old enough to remember how amazed visitors to our city were to see the mountains, the harbor, Stanley Park, our clean and attractive streets, and the ethnically diverse areas of our city. What do you see now? People sleeping on the streets everywhere.
There was a time when a walk down Hastings Street from Main to Woodward’s was a pleasant and enlightening experience, and those nights out for dinner in Chinatown were very fun and delicious. Who goes there now? That fantastic walk through Granville from the Bay to the Vogue Theater was exciting, with all the neon lights and fashionably dressed people.
We have a lot to do at the federal, provincial and local levels to once again be a city of which we can be proud.
Don McIntyre, Vancouver
Aid to the homeless should be in the federal budget
The number of homeless people continues to increase in our community, due to rapidly increasing housing costs. In the next federal budget, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland must focus on housing and ending homelessness, with a particular emphasis on providing direct financial support through a homelessness prevention and housing benefit. housing for those who are most at risk of losing their home or who are already homeless.
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Bronwen Besso-Smith, Vancouver
My experience showed that the health system remains strong.
It’s a shame that only bad news about our healthcare system makes the news, as recent experience has shown me that much of the system is still the best news possible. From my GP’s office a month ago now, I was taken by ambulance to Vancouver General Hospital, the emergency department, immediately admitted to intensive care and diagnosed with double pneumonia. Over the next 10 days, my life (of 75 years) was saved by the skills and care (including intubation) of a team of doctors and nurses who provided five-star care to me and my situation.
As I progressed rapidly, I was discharged to the wonderful new hospital-at-home follow-up care program. This meant daily home visits from a nurse (and once from a doctor!). With a provided tablet and other devices, my vital signs were monitored 24 hours a day at VGH, along with Zoom calls and discussions.
Four days later, now fully recovered, I was discharged. I can’t say enough about how I was treated. Despite the problems and criticisms of our system, we must not lose hope, as much of it remains strong and positive.
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Jane Thomas, Vancouver
Carbon tax revenue should be spent on water bombers to fight wildfires
I read in the news that Greece is purchasing seven Canadian-made De Havilland DHC-515 water bombers, costing approximately $392 million each, to address the fire risk caused by global warming. These de Havilland water bombers are very effective machines and, with early detection, can extinguish a forest fire before it takes a firm hold. Greece is about one-seventh the size of British Columbia.
Our governments constantly use wildfires as one of the reasons to impose the carbon tax. I might feel a little better about the carbon tax if all of this year’s money went to buying water bombers that would be strategically placed across Canada. Instead, the billions of dollars from the carbon tax collected by the government will go into general revenue.
John Dinero, Duncan
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