The Mayor of the Town of South Bruce Peninsula (TSBP) is grasping at straws for a defence at the upcoming court hearing. The TOWN themselves created these additional problems with years of interference on the beach from heavy machinery - tilling, high-hoes, a bulldozer. Years and years of cutting up and spitting out the roots of these plants by the TSBP has encouraged each little piece to re-root and spread and become even thicker.
It is time for a beach rehab plan written by experts and implemented and monitored by these experts, not one of their own in his own high hoe digging willy-nilly based on what a town council with no environmental stewardship knowledge thinks is best. You can see the poor results.
Help in developing a reasonable beach management plan has been publicly offered (Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation, Bird Studies Canada) but all we see is the Mayor digging in her heels and taking this on in court. Even if the Town were to win this case, it does nothing to solve the "root" problem. The TSBP will continue on with their old practice of mechanical interference with no sound knowledge and the problems will be exacerbated once again. No-one on this council has the expertise to develop and manage a rehabilitation of the beach. If they are developing such a plan, as the mayor has stated, it should be made public and be critiqued by those experts whose business it is to manage such projects.
Think long term people, there is no quick fix. So far it is Mother Nature one, TSBP zero.
Ann Rolfe
TSBP
