Disgusted!

 

I have spent my 50 years in Aylmer. My entire family born and raised here for generations. Many of the roads named after these ancestors: Foley, Cook, Simmons, Pink, Robert-Stewart. My family built churches, farms, schools -- this community. I am saddened by the way in which the land that once nourished and sustained life had been raped and plundered. We live in an age where we know better than to fill wetlands or clear cut forests for thousands of condo s... yet municipal governments keep allowing this to happen.

The plan to sell Fraser-Lucern-Deschênes Forest to pay for an arena in Plateau disgusts me. This wetland is home to bears, deer, skunks, rabbits, coyotes, frogs, turtles, birds, snakes, beaver, insects who use this, along with the Ministry of Transportation corridor beside Foley Rd, to live, migrate, access water, reproduce, and keep the land vibrant, healthy and part of a complex ecosystem that we need to  sustain life itself. Destroying one of the last natural areas in urban Aylmer would be catastrophic for nature and humans alike. This beautiful land also provides a place for people to connect with nature, enjoy plants and animals, exercise, walk their dogs, and be at peace. You cannot put a price on health of all life or peace and tranquility. 

We are in a unique position to speak for those who cannot on July 7th.  We need humans to advocate for the land, the animals and plants. We would be destroying a part of nature and an important piece of Aylmer's history and geography. I implore you to speak for the voiceless. Is the NCC not part of this planning to use this wetland and protect it for future generations to enjoy? How are all these projects not being questioned by provincial agencies that are govern natural resources, water, land and wildlife? There must be a way to protect our earth! Someone must care?!

Thank you very kindly on behalf of all life in the forest and my ancestors.

Glynda Simmons.

Aylmer