time for action

[maple]

Although this issue has been raised before, here are some links and contacts regarding the federal Government's bill to restrict public access to waterways. This notice I took from the Fish-hawk forum, and it seems to be right on the mark.

From: "Canadian Rivers Network" <canrivers>
To: <canrivers>
Sent: Sunday, February 08, 2009 9:07 PM
Subject: URGENT ALERT Government poised to erase navigation rights

GOVERNMENT’S BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION ACT ERASES THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF NAVIGATION IN CANADA

On Friday February 6, 2009, the federal Conservative government introduced its Budget Implementation Act (BI Act).

This Act is in fact an omnibus bill that introduces a series of sweeping legislation changes, including amendments to the Navigable Waters Protection Act (NWPA).

The proposed amendments to the NWPA will permanently erase the public right of navigation in Canada and will have serious consequences for the environmental health of Canadian waterways.

Under the proposed new NWPA, waterways in Canada will only be considered navigable under the sole discretion of the Minister of Transport.

The proposed new NWPA also gives the Minister of Transport sole discretion to determine whether or not any proposed project (“work”) on a Canadian waterway will have an impact on navigation.

The proposed new NWPA grants the Minister of Transport the authority to change, at any time, the criteria used to assess whether a waterway is navigable, or whether a work or type of work may interfere with navigation.

The four named works (bridges, booms, dams, and causeways), added to the NWPA in 1883 because these structures, by their very nature, interfere with navigation…have been removed.

The government has introduced these changes to the NWPA without consulting with:

- First Nations
- Paddling organizations
- The outdoor tourism industry
- Cottage associations
- River advocacy groups
- Anglers and hunters
- Anyone who uses Canadian waterways for business or recreation

Our position is:

- the NWPA would benefit from a comprehensive review and amendments to modernize and streamline administrative processes
- this government does not have a mandate to erase the public right of navigation in Canada
- these changes to the NWPA will diminish free access to our natural environment for all Canadians
- these changes to the NWPA will damage Canadian waters
- the government is acting irresponsibly and radically
- the government is not acting in the best interest of Canadians

Canada was discovered, explored and developed through the navigation of our waterways. The public right of navigation a fundamental part of what it means to be Canadian.

The Government of Canada , under the pretext of helping the economy, is erasing our right, our history, our heritage.

There is something you can do—raise your voice.

1) Inform yourself and others: Copy and paste this message into an email or a facebook message to your friends and encourage them to take action. We can be effective by working together. Every letter, every phone call, and every email will help.

2) Tell the government you care about Canada ’s waterways and that you do not support the proposed amendments to the NWPA or the elimination of the public right of navigation in Canada .

Send an email to the people listed below and express your concerns about the use of the Budget Implementation Act to make sweeping changes to legislation that is intended to protect Canadian waters and the rights of Canadian citizens.

Insist that no changes to the NWPA be made before a full and comprehensive public consultation process occurs.

Email:

National Manager, Navigable Waters Protection Program, David Osbaldeston:
[email protected]

Minister of Transportation, John Baird:
[email protected]

Minister of Environment, Jim Prentice:
[email protected]

Opposition transportation critics:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

Opposition environment critics:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

Opposition water critics:
[email protected]
[email protected],

And don’t forget your own MP. You can find your MP through this link:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Compila ... Language=E

and if you want to check it out yourself, here is the link to the original fish-hawk post.

http://www.fish-hawk.net/hawktalk/viewtopic.php?t=33239

Gotta speak up guys.

Maple

[Phoenix_Tom]

So what does this mean to regular boating folk? I'm going to lose my amateur navigator status?

The last time I heard of "the guy in the canoe" being used to check navigable waterway status was just before they granted the building permit for what is now Scotia Bank Place. And the guy in the canoe was a professional.

Maybe it's just me, but the guys on the link you provided seem to be very alarmist without giving us the impacts on what this really means to us.

I loved that one idea to build bridges away from the waterways the bridges are intended to cross. That's brilliant!

[Grizzly-Papa]

Here’s what Transport Canada and the Harper government want to do to that Canadian tradition, a proposed definition for “minor waters” dating to 2007:

Minor Waterways Criteria – Proposed National Criteria
- less than 60 cm depth at high water mark
- less than 3 m wide at high water mark
- channel slope greater than 2 percent
- sinuosity* (bends in the river) greater than 2
- natural obstacle frequency* greater than 3

As a property owner, I welcome the change. This will finally keep the riff-raff from launching a canoe by the side of the road in 6 inches of water to navigate my pond and blast away at the ducks sitting there. They will now be promptly charged with trespassing.

Grizzly-Papa