Editor, The Record:
Mission residents rejected the $300-million Stave Lake P3 water treatment facility for good reason.
The proposal is of no benefit for current residents and will saddle us with debt for decades to come. The proposed new water line doesn’t do anything to upgrade Mission’s existing aging infrastructure despite evidence there are leaks in the system which will need to be fixed.
Instead the costly water line takes a sharp turn west to Silverdale. The proposal intends to give an unknown corporation control of the operations of our water for 25 years or even longer. The costs of water to residents would be tied to the cost of hydro. This, at a time when hydro rates are skyrocketing means higher water costs for residents.
Simply put, the Stave Lake P3 proposal is a public bailout intended to save developers in Silverdale and Abbotsford hundreds of millions in infrastructure costs and we haven’t even been told what the sewer costs will be!
CAUSS believes that Mission should learn to live within its means rather than forcing growth at any cost. We simply cannot afford the massive infrastructure costs associated with sprawl-water. A truly sustainable community must live within basic economic and environmental limits, and must ensure that the public interest is not overridden by corporate agendas.
Tracy Lyster
CAUSS