Alexander Johnson
XXX XXX Street
New Westminster, BC
XXX XXX
(XXX) XXX-XXXX
Dear Premier
Horgan,
RE: Great First Steps on Habitat
and Wildlife in BC
In the last
year the provincial government has made some fantastic steps in the right
direction when it comes to habitat and wildlife. I want to say thank you and say that I hope
your government will keep up the momentum on issues related to habitat and wildlife
issues in BC. We still lag behind many
of our neighbours in funding and concrete plans for the recovery of the
habitat, rivers, and streams that our wildlife and fish need to thrive.
Specifically,
I would like to thank you for the $14 million in increased funding for
conservation, the $27 million allocated for caribou recovery, and the
provincial round table which is looking at the declines in moose
populations.
Now is time
to build on those steps and make even more significant improvements which will
protect habitat and restore wildlife populations. Specifically, I would like to advocate for
the following:
1)
Ending the professional reliance
model where
resource companies can hire their own experts to evaluate the impact of their
own projects. This is an obvious
conflict of interest. Provincial
registered profession biologists should be given the power to oversee and
minimize the impact of the resource sector on habitat.
2)
Dedicated funding for habitat
conservation from a
slight increase in price of fishing and hunting licences as well as resource
extraction royalties to offset impacts and enhance habitat. Please give the scientists and wildlife
managers the funding needed to ensure habitat and wildlife populations recover
and thrive.
3)
Enhanced investigative and
enforcement powers for
conservation officers and registered professional biologists to investigate
instances when property owners or resource industry activities violate laws or
practice standards. There are numerous
cases of property owners violating protective covenants in the Fraser valley,
damaging critical chinook salmon bearing creeks, while municipalities have
looked the other way.
As a hunter, angler, conservationist, and British Columbian these
issues are of critical importance to me as well as my friends and family.
Sincerely,
Alex Johnson | ============================================================= |
| |||
Dear Mr. Johnson:
Thank
you for writing about conversation in British Columbia. We appreciate
your taking the time to write and have noted your recommendations.
On
your behalf, we have shared a copy of your message with the Honourable
George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy.
His staff will ensure that your comments are included in any upcoming,
related discussions.
Thank you, again, for writing. We wish you all the best.
|
10:40 (1 hour ago)
|
