VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

HOLE IN ONE

I generally look forward to reading your Opinions page and I was so encouraged to read Bob Rosborough’s Feb. 20 article in support of the Lighthouse Links proposed golf development at Owls Head on the Eastern Shore. The following paragraph was excellent and well said: “So, for a bunch of ranting social media followers — speared on by several whose questionable, unsuccessful past employment within government agencies and/ or parasitic commercial endeavours on government support agencies with axes to grind against Nova Scotia — to zero in on the Eastern Shore and this substantial and critically important project is deceptive and morally corrupt.”

Just to mention one benefit alone that this development would have — think of the impact on such a jewel as Liscombe Lodge. Thanks, Bob.

Basil Mattie, Tracadie, P.eng., Strait Engineering Limited

SENSITIVE ECOSYSTEM

In his Feb. 20 opinion piece, Bob Rosborough argues that the sale and construction of golf courses at Owls Head will help the economy of the Eastern Shore to “thrive and survive.”

Most certainly, people who live in the area deserve a healthy economy, but are golf courses and luxury condos the answer?

Rosborough describes the two wealthy Americans, Beckwith and Kitty Gilbert, who are behind the deal as “environmentally conscious” and, at the same time, notes that the land in question has been undisturbed for over 10,000 years “since the last ice age.”

This land was, at one point, environmentally significant enough to be designated as a park. Several scientific studies have determined that the ecology of the land is “globally rare.” It is difficult to make a valid argument that the Gilberts have any intention of caring for the natural environment when the golf courses they are proposing are decidedly man-made.

Rosborough also embraces the Gilberts as “philanthropists,” apparently saviours who are parachuting in to save the “humble” poor who live on the Eastern Shore. I will point out that the very wealthy don’t get very wealthy by lending a hand to sagging economies. Perhaps wrapping self-interest in a blanket of patriarchal condescension sweetens the deal?

Independent studies conducted by Dalhousie and Saint Mary’s universities and confirmed by experts at the Ecology Action Centre and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society offer scientific proof that the environments of the land, the shore, and the eel grass beds just off shore are fragile and could very well be destroyed by the proposed development. Rosborough dismisses these bodies of scientific study as the “false claims” of “ranting social media followers.”

Rosborough’s argument and the development he supports fly in the face of common sense and scientific fact.

Full disclosure: I am from the South Shore. I do not presume to speak for the residents of the Owls Head area. However, I believe that this issue extends beyond Owls Head and even beyond Nova Scotia. Ultimately, we all live in the same environment. We breathe the same air and drink the same water. I support environmental causes because I have grandchildren and someday they will have children.

Peter Barss, West Dublin

NOT BINARY CHOICE

Bob Rosborough’s Feb. 20 opinion piece failed to address the key concerns about Owls Head Provincial Park. The question has never been whether or not golf courses should be developed on the Eastern Shore. There is no lack of private land on the Eastern Shore that would be as suitable, if not more, for such developments.

Any politicians or private interests who frame the situation as “golf vs. conservation” or “economy vs. environment” are not only misrepresenting the situation but also doing a disservice to Nova Scotians.

The Nova Scotia government reneged on its commitments by secretly delisting Owls Head Provincial Park, a piece of public land slated for protection. The government deliberately discounted the property’s 45-year history, its wellestablished conservation values, and years of public consultations, all to offer the land for sale to an American developer at a bargain price.

What’s most egregious is that this was all done behind closed doors, so there was no opportunity for public consultation or scientific inquiry before the property was delisted.

Former Lands & Forestry Minister (now Premier) Iain Rankin ignored extensive research on the site’s conservation values when he facilitated the secret delisting and letter of offer to sell Owls Head

Provincial Park.

If our elected officials can covertly and unilaterally choose not to honour past commitments, the next time they could sacrifice any one of a hundred other “provincial parks” that are awaiting official designation. It’s no wonder that citizens across the province are concerned about the precedent this will set.

Mr. Rosborough is entitled to his opinion, but he does not speak for all Eastern Shore residents. Many residents of the Eastern Shore — along with thousands of other Nova Scotians — are advocating for the government to respect the scientific evidence and respect its citizens. We should not have to take the government to court to have a chance to be heard.

All Nova Scotians are stakeholders of Our Parks and Protected Areas Plan; we are all in this together. Every resident deserves transparency and meaningful public consultation — not years of orchestrated secrecy — from their government.

Patricia Egli, Oyster Pond, member of Eastern Shore Forest Watch

SHORT ON FACTS

As they say, everyone is entitled to their opinion. However, let’s not confuse opinions with facts. Bob Rosborough’s Feb. 20 opinion piece on the desirability of a golf course on the Eastern Shore is long on opinion and short on facts.

Interesting that Mr. Rosborough thinks that just because somebody lives here on the Eastern Shore, they are an expert on what is good for this environment! Furthermore, he contends that a golf course is going to be a panacea for local economic problems without presenting any evidence whatsoever. Meanwhile, we are being sold down the river to an American billionaire in a secret backroom deal. But hey, no problem!

There are local residents who are concerned about preserving our environment and who are interested in the science. As a result, those citizens are advocating to save Owls Head from a deal that never should have been on offer in the first place.

As a local resident, it’s heartbreaking to see the community torn apart by this “get rich quick” scheme that completely ignores the reality of the location.

This is not another Cabot Links. Go ahead and promise people jobs … Pull the wool over their eyes while public coastal land gets sold out from underneath us for a song. Karen Schlick, Musquodoboit Harbour