Remember the NPCA paintball fight?

With all the news about Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority lately, I’d like to remind everyone about the Mark Barnfield case.

You remember Mark, he wanted to play paintball on his bush lot in an industrial area of Welland, but was told he couldn’t because it was a ‘ protected wetland.’

If you’d been in the bush before, you’d know that the only reason the turtles were there is because the Ministry of Transport had backfilled the ponds they lived in to make way for the Highway 406 extension. Where was NPCA then?

A court trial, presided over by a proper judge, resulted in the authority’s case being thrown out. But it filed an appeal, and the second trial overseen by a justice of the peace was a resounding win for NPCA. The three employees who made the case against Mark have since been let go by NPCA, and the justice of the peace’s decision has left him with fines of more than $ 11,000.

Meanwhile, the City of Welland had happily collected the various fees and permit costs from Mark, assuring him that all was in order. But when push came to shove, there was no assistance or support from the city toward defending his case in court. Welland’s mayor, it should be noted here, also serves on the board of the

NPCA.

I read in a statement a short time ago that Mayor Campion would like to be part of the cleanup at the NPCA, and this seems to me like an opportunity to clean up two messes with one broom.

Greg Cook Welland