'To
see them in their varying aspects through the seasons and the
weather,

rejoicing
in the great storms, in the spiritual mountain light, putting forth
their new leaves and flowers when all the streams are in flood and
the birds are singing, and sending away their seeds in the
thoughtful Indian summer when all the landscape is glowing in a
deep calm enthusiasm, like the face of a god, -- for this you must
love them and live with them, as free from schemes and cares as the
trees themselves.'

Pierre
Berton had a few choice words for men commercializing our natural
resources for their benefit when he wrote the following in a letter
to staunch Canadian nationalist Mel Hurtig as reported in the
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives magazine Monitor Jan. '03):

"The
money men, who care more about the bottom line than they do about
national sovereignty, are destroying our country. They want us all
to become Americans, with an American presidential system, an
American commercial culture, and an American dollar.

They
do not understand that our history is unique because they do not
read it; nor do they care that it is neglected in our schools. In
their myopia and their greed they are blinded to the dissimilarity
that exists on both sides of the border; we are a northern people,
the creatures of a unique geography, as different from our
neighbours as the Precambrian shield differs from the Florida
everglades.

They
have suckered us into believing that 'privatization' is the key to
prosperity,
by which they mean the commercialization of our natural resources
and our national institutions. But it goes farther than that: what
they really want is our national soul."

"Forest
management is sustainable when it maintains and enhances the
long-term health of forest ecosystems to the benefit of all living
things, both nationally and globally, while providing
environmental, economic, social and cultural opportunities for the
benefit of present and future generations. Sustainable forest
management refers to management regimes applied to forest land
which maintain the productive and renewal capacities as well as the
genetic, species and ecological diversity of forest ecosystems.

Sustainable
forest management means managing the use, development, and
protection of natural and physical resources in a way, or at a
rate, which enables people and communities to provide for their
social, economic, and cultural well-being and for their health and
safety while (a) sustaining the potential of natural and physical
resources (excluding minerals) to meet the reasonably foreseeable
needs of future generations; and (b) safeguarding the
life-supporting capacity of air, water, soil and ecosystem; and (c)
avoiding, remedying, or mitigating any adverse effects of
activities on the environment."

This
is from the "Eastern Ontario Model Forest Code of Forestry
Practice" manual which is "dedicated to today's young
people and to future generations in Eastern Ontario."

INDEX
DES QUESTIONS IMPORTANTES – ISSUES INDEX

APPENDIX
/ APPENDICES

INTRODUCTION

J'invite
les lecteurs du document Le public s'oppose The public objects©
qui en font la lecture pour la première fois de visiter la
section Points d'explication dans l'Appendice 2. )

Après
avoir lu ces explications vous pouvez revenir ici à
l'Introduction en cliquant sur le lien à la fin du texte.

Readers
viewing or reading the document Le public s'oppose The public
objects© for the first time are invited to proceed directly to
the Housekeeping Items in Appendix 2. ) and then returning here by
clicking on the link provided at the end of that text.

_________________________________

The
preliminary version of this report was distributed to Council
members of the United Counties of Prescott Russell on February 17^th
2003 and was deposited with the Director of Planning and Economic
Development for the United Counties of Prescott and Russell, Mr.
Pierre Mercier, during the February 18^th
2003 regular meeting of the Council of the United Counties of
Prescott Russell.

The
earlier report had also been sent to Stephen Harper, Leader of the
Opposition and to the Honourable Don Boudria, the Honourable
Minister for Human Resources Development (HRDC) Jane Stewart and the
Honourable David Anderson, Minister for the Environment. The
Canadian Press also received a copy of the earlier report.

This
revised edition will be distributed to the same list of recipients
and in addition will be sent to the Minister for the Environment for
Ontario, the Honourable Chris Stockwell. In addition to the report
being sent to the Canadian Press, the local media will also receive
a copy.

The
revised edition may well have been distributed to all of the above
by the time readers are reading the hard or Internet copy of this
report.

A
few readers have asked 'Why is a Public Report to a predominantly
French-Canadian United Counties of Prescott Russell Council, on a
French-Canadian company, owned and operated by French-Canadians,
promising financial assistance to the French-Canadian Montfort
Hospital, proposing to install a French-Canadian cultural Theme
Park, in a predominantly Francophone area, in a predominantly
Francophone federal riding, ... written mostly in English?'
Excellent question.

The
answer lies in the fact that the protest group which sounded the
alarm back in early November was made up of a number of local
Anglophone residents (remember the UCPR is 40% English-speaking) and
although it was announced at the onset that this was to be bilingual
protest campaign where the members of both language groups would be
informed and allowed to participate on an equal basis, it rapidly
became evident that we were hard pressed for time and could not
afford to say and do things in both languages at all times ...
things went downhill from there on until we were all speaking and
writing in English only.

The
protest group (still unnamed at this time) provided me with copies
of most of their protest letters to government authorities at all
levels. I was responsible for assembling these protest letters,
along with a huge number of research and Access to Information
findings, into a hopefully readable public document.

The
United Counties of Prescott Russell and the municipality of
Clarence-Rockland could appropriately send me, André Payant,
a letter acknowledging the public service that I provided (an
expression of thanks would help too) for the many hours I have spent
researching and writing this public report which really should have
been prepared by UCPR and Clarence Rockland personnel, before and
during its engagement in their relationship with the Francoscénie
company.

_______________________

WHAT'S
NEW
in this revised edition of "Le public s'oppose The public
objects"?

The
earlier edition had been prepared under severe time constraints and
was uploaded to the Internet by someone who was (and continues to
be) unfamiliar with HTML coding and the vagaries of a WordPerfect
HTML conversion software. A subsequent version was uploaded in a
more user-friendly PDF format.

Corrections
have since been made, duplications have been removed, the entire
text tightened up and, while this work was being done, new material
was coming in that absolutely had to be included in a revised and
updated edition. The revised edition is what you are reading now.

The
fact that the Council of the United Counties of Prescott-Russell had
adopted a motion to defer a decision to a future meeting pending the
receipt of all of the developer's completed technical reports
provided a 3-weeks window wherein a revised document could be
developed and deposited to Council at the next regular meeting which
is scheduled to take place at l'Orignal Ontario on March 25^th
2003.

Following
is the list of NEW ISSUES that will need to be considered by Council
of the United Counties of Prescott Russell:

1)
A HOUSE OF CARDS:

a)
a
Market Study
done by a Consultant of questionable credibility

b)
a
Business Plan
based on the Market Study above.

c)
no Feasability
Study

d)
no Environmental
Assessment (EA) study

e)
no Social
Impact Study

f)
no Regional
Economic Impact Study
(

g)
no Cost
Benefit Analysis

h)
no acceptable short and long term
Strategic Plans.

i)
most Technical
Reports
only in preliminary stages of development.

2)
ON A SHAKY DECISION-MAKING FOUNDATION:

a)
Forester
says
'Look somewhere else for a 353 acre Theme Park'.

b)
Larose
Forest Strategic Plan
is put on back burner.

c)
UCPR
Official Plan
is put on back burner.

d)
nobody wants to talk MOU
– the developer fails to meet his obligations. )

e)
Memories of Shawinigan?:
The project gets a boost through HRDC.

f)
Les belles histoires des pays d'en haut --

**********************************

LAROSE
FOREST – WHAT IS THAT?

First,
where is it? This 26,000-acre mostly man-made forest is situated
approximately 1 km East of the eastern limits of the City of Ottawa.
It may be accessed via the Russell Road or highways 17 (aka 174) or
417.

Larose
Forest is a natural habitat for wildlife flora and fauna. Larose
Forest also serves the Ottawa Valley and Eastern Ontario population
because, as almost everyone knows, forests act as heat sinks as
well as air and water purifiers. The citizens of Ottawa are direct
beneficiaries as the western limits of Larose Forest are within a
kilometre of the national capital's eastern limits.

Larose
Forest belongs to the Canadian public and particularly the taxpayers
of the United Counties of Prescott-Russell. Without question, these
lands are managed by the custodians of the Forest, the elected
municipal officials, on our behalf, and on behalf of its treasured
natural habitat and wildlife. Politicians come and go every four
years or so, but the Forest and the moose and wildlife have been
there forever, and hopefully will be allowed to remain there
forever.

The
Larose Forest is a man-made forest, intended to correct man-made
destruction. Its beginnings, purpose and environment are very well
described in a delightfully bilingual book entitled Reflections on
the South Nation Watershed - Histoire illustrée de la
Nation-Sud by Patrick Coyne (General Store Publishing House). A list
of outlets where this bilingual book may be purchased in Embrun,
Rockland, St Albert, Casselman, Bourget etc. may be obtained by
calling the South Nation Authority at 1-877-984-2948

The
custodian managers of the forest, the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell where the forest is situated, have described the
Larose Forest in a public document as follows:

Larose
Forest takes in 104 kilometres of mixed forest, plantations and
marsh. It is crisscrossed by creeks and rivers and more than 160
kilometres of roads and trails. The forest is 48 kilometres east of
Ottawa on the Russelll Road. The Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources manages the land, which is owned by the United Counties
of Prescott and Russell. (This
is no longer true, as management of the Forest is now a P-R
responsibility)

The
forest is an ideal place to lose oneself -not literally, of course,
since the forest is crisscrossed by roads and creeks , making it
easy to pinpoint your location .

HISTORICAL
NOTES

Prior
to the great fur trading period a tribe of Algonquin Indians, named
the "Petite- Nation-du-Sud by the explorer Champlain, were the
sole residents of the Larose area.

Ircquois
war parties from the south wiped out the Algonquins in the 17th
century , but their name still graces the South Nation River which
winds through Prescott and Russell Counties .

Even
though the nearby Ottawa River became a busy highway for explorers
like Radisson and Groseilliers missionaries like Father Brebeuf, and
the tough "coureurs-re-bois" of the North\West Company,
there was no extensive settlement until the end of the 18th
century.The first settlement was in l'Orignal, which began as a
"seigneurie". Later,

the
land was opened up for public sale. After the war of 1812, English
and French settlers
came
in greater numbers and tiny communities began springing up along the
crude roads in Eastern Ontario. Some came from the counties of
Glengarry and Stormont. Many others came from the old townships in
Lower Canada where land was becoming scarce.

Because
lumber was king in the Ottawa Valley in the 19th century, it was
woodcutters and river drivers who opened the forests of Prescott and
Russell. A mill at Jessup's Falls and axes were swinging along the
Castor, South Nation and South Indian rivers .Many of the men
stayed behind to farm the land they had cleared. About 1850, a
community of small farms was started at Bourget which was first
called "The Brook" after a small creek nearby. The first
homes were chinked log cabins with notched corners, later replaced
by frame structures .

By
1855, Bourget was a village with a church and a school. Many farms
prospered in the quiet decades after the lumber boom, except those
built on the huge sand bed south of the town. It soon became known
as the "Bourget desert " .

The
sandy soil --cut-over , burned-over , and farmed-out --had begun to
drift. Ferdinand Larose, the local Agricultural Representative
believed restoring the trees would tie down the soil and produce a
valuable crop. The reforestation program began in 1928.

AN
INDUSTRY

Larose
Forest contributes pulpwood, sawlogs, poles, posts and fuelwood to
the local products industries .

A
WILDLIFE HAVEN

More
than 47 different species of birds (now
inventoried at 82)
including mourning doves, several species of hawks and smaller birds
use Larose Forest as a nesting ground. Some of the most common
native animals found in Larose Forest are deer, moose, fox, coyote
and beaver .

YEAR
ROUND RECREATION

Picnics
- Four picnic sites equipped with tables , parking facilities ,
drinking water , waste containers and one shelter.

Trails
- Many trails throughout the forest are ideal for hiking , horseback
riding , skiing , dog sledding and snowmobiling . A nature trail is
found on the eleventh concession at the Pineview picnic site.

Hunting
- opportunities exist for deer, ducks, ruffed (sic) grouse and hare
during the open season.

This
document is intended for public consultation and serves as a vehicle
for the expression of the many concerns that have been voiced
regarding the Francoscénie Company's highly questionable
proposal to put up a Theme Park in Larose Forest.

It
is up to the public, and more specifically you the reader, to voice
your opinions and ask the necessary questions by mailing or
e-mailing your comments and questions to the politicians who will be
deciding, to grant or not, the Francoscénie Company's request
for a 353-acre exceptional zoning change to allow the developer to
proceed with the construction of a multi-million dollar Theme Park
in Larose ... should you decide to get involved, to question the
authorities, to safeguard our public and natural domain the
necessary addresses are listed for your convenience in appendix 8.
Please send a copy of your letters at <apayant@magma.ca>.

The
Francoscénie Company's multi-million dollar, 353-acre Theme
Park project is a public project in every sense of the word, but for
the fact that it has been devised by a private company, using half a
million or so dollars of public start-up funds. This strongly
suggests to any public-minded elected official or administrator that
a high level of transparency and accountability must be
complied-with. It also suggests that even where there are no legal,
laid down requirements for meeting certain Provincial or Federal
(much of that a half million dollars start-up is federal funds)
public project requirements, there is nonetheless a high moral
responsibility to meet, as well as to be transparent and
accountable, certain requirements, especially where these address
public safety and security, environmental concerns, and human rights
issues.

An
extensive analysis has been completed to determine if the
Francoscénie Company's proposal is in keeping with the United
Counties' Official Plan – we conclude that it does not. A word
of caution is required at this point: the analysis was based on the
review of the Counties' Official Plans that has been a
publicly-available document until the beginning of the new year 2003
when it was withdrawn from circulation on the Internet. A copy of
that original document is now available upon request and may
eventually be re-posted on the Internet for anyone wanting to
cross-check the many references we provide to that document in our
analysis which is provided in Issue 16.

Who
are these protesters anyway -- these people who seem to go around
objecting to modernization and progress, people who cannot live and
let live, and cannot leave well enough alone when all that is
intended here is a memorial celebration of Eastern Ontario
Francophone history, heritage and culture?

Is
this a grass roots movement? Well, perhaps not a full-blown one but
possibly the beginning of one – one inspired by the
government's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol; one inspired by a
need to preserve our natural environment as natural as possible, for
as long as possible.

-
sometimes they are parents who moved here from the city to obtain a
safe, healthy and relatively unstressed growing environment for
their children and possibly even their grandchildren. In other words
they have a long term interest in the area and in preserving the
natural environment of the Larose Forest -- theirs in not a world of
instant gratification;

-
they are environmentalists who needed to be close to as natural an
environment as possible, for their professional interests, but also
for their mental well-being;

-
they are people who have been here for generations, and intend to
continue living here for many more. They intend to leave a
nature-respecting legacy for future generations;

-
they are farmers, merchants, schoolteachers, auto mechanics, nurses
and doctors, every kind of folks who are here because they strongly
believe they have a stake here and want to raise families in an
environment which has as its main attraction a low key, sane, and
healthy milieu with as little 'progress' in the sense of unending
consumerism, rampant opportunism, materialism and a hurried
lifestyle as possible;

-
they are people who know and appreciate the differences between
Canadian-style Quality of Life and American-style Standard of
Living. They are fully aware that, while the U.S. has one of the
highest Standards of Living in the world, it is no accident that
Canada was for so many years THE world leader in terms of Quality of
Life;

-
they appreciate that we live in a caring society (the Canada Health
Program is ample evidence) and that Canada is an
environmentally-conscious and mindful society (Kyoto is ample
evidence of that);

-
they are people who value longer term qualitative aspects as opposed
to the short-term instant gratification lifestyle of materialism;

-
they are people who fully appreciate that big business must continue
to act exclusively in the interests of shareholders, for to do
otherwise they will lose the interminable growth race. Such people
know that they will have only themselves to blame if they do not act
now to defend the encroachments of business and protect their
natural environment from commercialization. Had the business
environment that we live in today prevailed back some 80 years ago
when the area was becoming a wind-eroded desert leaving bare many
farms as sand fields, the reaction then would not have been to plant
trees to stabilize and restore the land, but rather some
enterprising businessmen would have seen a business opportunity and
opened-up an ever-growing giant sandpit.

It
is most important to remember that the objections and questions
which are presented below had all been individually prepared and
presented to the civic authorities during the November 27, 2002
public meeting in Bourget.

There
was no organization to consult, no concerted plans or study reviews
to refer to. Each and every one of the objections had been prepared
on the family kitchen table or its equivalent. That explains the
great diversity of approaches and writing styles.

What
is rather amazing is that these people all arrived at the same
conclusions from such diverse perspectives, using such a variety of
unfinished and often unprofessional reports.

Their
conclusion: the project makes sense, the proposed location is absurd
in the extreme. The package deal as it offered to the United
Counties of Prescott-Russell, to the municipality of
Clarence-Rockland, to the Eastern Ontario Catholic School Board, to
the Montfort Hospital Foundation and to the many corporate sponsors
and the many well-meaning individuals that were inveigled to support
this Disney-like Theme Park in beautiful Larose Forest smells to
high heaven!

Nothing
can quite summarize as well, nor be as comforting to the doubtful
few who might question the integrity and seriousness of intent of
our elected municipal officials and their support staff than the
following letter from the former President of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell which was attached to an Environmental Study Report
prepared by Ethel Coté of l'Art du dévelopement (a
local planning consultant) for the United Counties and therefore
paid for by the taxpayers:

Chers
concitoyens, concitoyennes,

Depuis
l’an 2000, la région des Comtés unis de Prescott
et Russell a repris la planification et la gestion de notre forêt
publique - la Forêt Larose. Cette reprise de la gestion de
la Forêt Larose est une occasion unique d’optimiser et
mettre en valeur cette ressource importante, et ce, pour l’ensemble
de la collectivité de Prescott et Russell.

Cette
deuxième ébauche du plan stratégique, intitulé
«la
Forêt Larose - une forêt pour sa communauté
», comprend une mission, des objectifs et des thèmes
comportant sur la gestion, l’aménagement et sur
l’utilisation de la Forêt Larose, révisés
et discutés lors de la consultation publique. Le processus
de consultation auprès de la collectivité a permis de
recueillir les commentaires et les recommandations des citoyens et
citoyennes qui ont à cœur notre forêt publique.
Les suggestions et les idées, qu’ils nous ont
proposées, sont maintenant intégrées au Plan
stratégique de la Forêt Larose qui peut maintenant être
présenté au conseil afin d’être discuté
et éventuellement entériné.

La
Forêt Larose représente un actif majeur et il importe
plus que jamais d’assurer que son potentiel réponde à
nos besoins en tant que communauté. De la part du conseil
des Comtés unis de Prescott et Russell, je suis fier de la
participation des citoyennes, citoyens et des organisations à
cette consultation publique qui saura guider la mise en œuvre
du Plan stratégique de la Forêt Larose.

Bien
à vous

Jean-Pierre
Pierre, Président

Comtés
unis de Prescott et Russell

(Note
aux lecteurs: l'Appendice 1 donne un aperçu dans un profil
d'analyse Couts-Bénifices comment bien le projet du
dévelopeur servirait à rencontrer les besoins de la
communauté et les exigences du Plan directeur de la forêt)

An
English summary of the above: the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell have had the management responsibility for Larose
Forest since since year 2000. This is an opportunity for us to
develop the Forest to the dvantages of the P-R community of
taxpayers. This second draft of the Strategic Plan entitled 'la
forêt Larose - une forêt pour sa community' contains a
Mission Statement (see below) which outlines the management approach
which was developed as a result of a round of public consultations.
Public comments have been reflected in the Larose Forest Strategic
Plan and are now ready for discussion by Council before being
ratified. The Larose Forest is a major resource for the United
Counties and it now most important that its potential be realized to
respond community needs. On behalf of Council of United Counties of
Prescott-Russell i am proud of the community's participation in the
public consultation process which will provide guidance in the
management of the Forest according to the Strategic Plan. (Editorial
note: readers are invited to read the Cost-Benefit outline in
Appendix 1 to see how well the needs of the community and compliance
with the Larose Forest Strategic Plan requirements are met)

Then
too, there is a clear statement of both short term and long term
intent, in the United Counties of Prescott-Russell Mission
Statement which says to all taxpayers that,

"The
Larose Forest is, through its cultural, social and economic wealth,
a unique resource which must be enhanced and preserved for the
entire community of Prescott-Russell. It is important to ensure that
according to its mission, the Larose Forest gains a key place which
will permit the promotion of the Larose Forest as being the natural
reserve of the region of Prescott-Russell."

One
striking point is that when one attempts to find the basic truth
about the Larose Forest, how and why it came about, and finally why
these public lands are now subject to being capitalized for the
benefit of private interests is that no-one ever bothers to look
into these questions.

It
is significant that few local politicians and no information
material provided by the Company mentions the past near-destruction
of Larose Forest, for that would prevent the commercialization of
the Forest for short-term pecuniary gain.

The
fundamental truth that is rarely mentioned is: THE
ONLY REASON THAT THE LAROSE FOREST EXISTS TODAY IS THAT THIS FRAGILE
AREA HAD EARLIER BEEN CLEAR-CUT BY LOGGERS, THEN FARMED BY
WELL-INTENTIONED FARMERS WHO ATTEMPTED WHO ATTEMPTED TO TILL THE
MARGINAL SANDY SOIL AND VERY NEARLY DESTROYED THE ENTIRE AREA IN THE
PROCESS.

Another
fundamental truth that is never mentioned is: THE
LAROSE FOREST WAS FIRST INITIATED AS A LONG TERM SOLUTION TO A LONG
TERM PROBLEM. IT WAS DEVISED AS A RENEWABLE SELF- SUSTAINABLE
FOREST; NOT AS A PROFIT-MAKING COMMERCIAL ENDEAVOUR WHICH WILL ONLY
RESULT IN OUR MAKING THE VERY SAME MISTAKES ALL OVER AGAIN. WILL WE
NEVER LEARN?

A
more current fundamental truth that is not mentioned is: CANADA
HAS RATIFIED THE KYOTO ACCORD WHICH CALLS FOR THE PROTECTION OF OUR
FORESTS AND NATURAL RESOURCES. THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS ALREADY
SPENT MANY MILLIONS IN SUPPORT OF KYOTO WHEN IT DEVELOPED ITS MODEL
FOREST PROGRAM, A PROGRAM WHICH INCLUDES THE LAROSE FOREST.

The
following 100 or so pages will examine these Issues as well as all
the mitigating factors. These pages will serve to re-organize the
essential points and questions that were made in individual and
group presentations to the two municipal councils of the United
Counties of Prescott-Russell and Clarence-Rockland during a public
meeting of November 27, 2002 -- a public meeting some 6 weeks
previous had been so poorly advertised that almost no-one showed up.

These
pages will illustrate clearly that this hybrid public project using
public lands and federal start-up funds for a private company has
suffered a SORELY
FLAWED PUBLIC CONSULTATION PROCESS.

This
report will also examine what could possibly influence the United
Counties of Prescott-Russell and why should they be chastised if
they grant the developer's request for a zoning change for 353 acres
of prime forest.

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for approving such a project when it has already
been submitted and approved for funding by two federal government
departments and apparently passed Environmental Review muster?

Who
could blame the municipal official of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for approving a proposal that is projected by the
developer to bring in thousands of dollars year after year in
spin-off investments and revenues to the local economy?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for approving a project that is forecast by the
developer to generate local jobs?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for approving a project that will be a source of
new-found revenue for the Montfort Hospital?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for approving the commercialization of a mature
White and Red Pine forest that is said to be entirely devoid of any
economic potential?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for averting their eyes when the very real
potential for another OKA blow-up has been identified to them?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of Prescott-Russell for not
insisting on a Provincial Environmental Impact Assessment Review
when this environmentally-impossible project has so easily glided
through the federal process, not once but apparently twice?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for granting easy, unquestioned approval to this
project that public documents show has somehow been favoured with
special consideration at the highest levels of government?.

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for not knowing that the entire area is rich with
cultural importance as is so well recounted by Patrick Coyne in his
bilingual book entitled ' of the South Nation Watershed / de la
Nation Sud.

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for suggesting that the objectors could be subject
to lawsuits by the developer who would claim loss of economic
opportunity and employment?

Who
could blame the municipal officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for having the impression that this local project
is not subject to Canada's federal Kyoto Accord ?

Who
could blame the municipal of officials of the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell for short term instant gratification when they
won't be around for the longer term effects of their decisions?

It
is unthinkable
that anyone would consider an environmental assessment review of the
Francoscénie Company's proposal as being complete without
most seriously considering the major risk of installing a 353 acre
Theme Park, with a forecast attendance of 2500 visitors per show,
(that's 75,000 visitors per year!) in Larose Forest ... a forest
which has recently been ravaged by a major Ice Storm and is now
littered with dry dead trees and branches, which would go off like a
bomb with all that flammable pine gum when the developer puts on a
pyrotechnics show with people smoking in the uncontrolled
unrestricted outdoors and restaurants. The Larose Forest has already
suffered a major forest fire which destroyed thousands of trees,
many houses and farms, are we to take the chance of another forest
fire?

We
conclude from a review of HRDC documents which we obtained through
the Access to Information process that there has been NO MENTION AT
ALL of the major risks for another forest fire in Larose Forest in
the still not available Environmental Impact Assessment reports that
should have been provided by the Company when it requested half a
million dollars of taxpayers' money.

Our
review of the Access to Information documentation on the
prerequisite requirements for a comprehensive Environmental
Assessment reveals that the department's decision-informing process
is flawed:

a)
the Decision-making form entitled 'À remplir pour déterminer
si une évaluation environmentale est nécessaire' which
is used to decide yea or nay to provide grants (in this case
$451,678) contains no specific question on increased risks of forest
fires as an environmental risk;

b)
the Decision-informing form does not ask if there is background
material available to confirm the developer's information provided
on the Decision Form such as books, magazines, Web site, promotional
literature or advertising. In this case the developer has a web site
where the much sought-after and disputed Environmental Assessment
reports (almost all still incomplete Drafts) were posted by the
developer at the time of application and until the early part of
this year 2003 when they were removed both from the developer's site
and from the United Counties of Prescott-Russell site. A word of
explanation is in order here: the United Counties of
Prescott-Russell had posted the developer's 15 Technical Reports
(most having to do with the environment under a questionable MOU
arrangement that it had with the developer).

c)
the Decision-informing form does not advise the applicant that the
information provided by the developer may be verified for accuracy
against the other government documentation or other external sources
of information (such as libraries or the Internet) that he/she might
have noted in reply to the questions.

d)
The Decision-informing form asks no specific question to establish
that the Environmental Assessment Agency's RA Manager's Guide public
consultation and information steps have been followed.

The
issue is of some urgency since the Council for the United Counties
of Prescott-Russell will be making a final decision on granting, or
not, a zoning exclusion to the Francscénie Company (the
developer) for a multi-million dollar, 353-acre, Theme Park project
in Larose Forest on FEBRUARY
18^TH
2003.

I
invite you to visit and print out our summary of the many Letters of
Objections and professional environmental assessment reports which
may be seen on the Internet on a personal temporary web site at and
later at

_____________________________

FRANCOSCÉNIE,
WHAT IS THAT?

Francoscénie
is a non-profit company incorporated with a provincial charter under
the registration number 869954776.

Francoscénie's
Founding President is Mr. Albert
Bourdeau
on the company's web site and simply 'President' on United Counties
of Prescott Russell documentation. He is also the former owner of
an insurance agency and the local newspaper Le Reflet; he is the
president of Promocom, all of Embrun Ontario.

The
members of the Board of Directors are:

-
Alain
F. Dagenais
vice-President on Human Resources Development Canada, (HRDC)
documents and President on Francoscénie's website) and
President of A. Dagenais et Associés and of Legal Engeneering
(sic) Experts Inc. according to Access to Information (ATI)
documents (ATI #000069) obtained and the developer's Business Plan
dated January 2002.

-
Jacques
Blouin
is Secretary of the Board and former president of the Eastern
Ontario District Catholic School Board and former Director-general
of the Montfort Hospital Foundation.

-
Lionel
Renaud
is Treasurer of the Board according to the company's website but he
is not listed (this is a legal requirement?) on the company's
Business Plan or elsewhere in ATI documents.

-
Jacques Châtelain
is a member of the Board according to the company's website but,
like the others listed below, is not identified as a Board member in
any capacity, as Director, or anything else on any of the 549 ATI
documents that were obtained to research this Francoscénie
project.

-
Robert
Laplante
is a member of the Board.

-
Jocelyne
Leroux,
is a member of the Board.

-
Yves
Ménard
is a member of the Board.

-
Barbara
Missey
is a member of the Board.

-
Jean Marc
Paquette
is a member of the Board.

-
Linda
Savard
is a member of the Board.

-
Lise
Bourgeois,
member ex officio of the Board according to the company's website
and is also a Director according to ATI documents.

-
Danielle
Tessier,
member ex officio of the Board according to the comp[any's website
and according to ATI documents is also Director of the Media branch
of La Cité collégiale.

-
Estelle
Patenaude
is not listed on the company's website but is shown as a Director on
ATI documents.

-
Louise
Deslauriers
is not listed on the company's website but is identified as Board
Secretary on ATI documents.

The
Écho d'un peuple management group is made up of:

-
Sylvain
Charlebois
who is Francoscénie's General Manager in charge of the Larose
Forest Theme Park presentation.

-
Ginette
Goulet
is Sponsorship Director.

-
Félix
Saint-Denis
is Artistic Director.

-
Richard
Lebel
is Director of Communications.

-
Louise
Deslauriers
is Executive Assistant

The
Francoscénie company describes itself as follows;

-
on its website, "Francoscénie, a not for profit
organization, was inspired by the S.O.S. Montfort movement. The
Fondation de l'Hôpital Montfort actively participates in its
development"

-
in correspondence with the federal government "........

Francoscénie
is operating under contract with 'Le Regroupement franco-oontarien
de dévelopment économique et d'employabilité'
(RDEE) a division of the Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC)
federal department. The minister of HRDC is the Honourable Jane
Stewart. The present contract with RDEE expires on the 31^st
of March 2003, unless an extension has been granted. An extension to
contract is not in evidence in the 549 pages of Access to
Information (ATI) documentation which have 'inspired' this Public
Report to UCPR Council to document the public protest of the
proposed installation of a 353 acre Theme Park in a Conservation
area known as the Larose Forest.

According
to ATI information (ATI p.160 and on and ATI # 109 & 414), the
Francoscénie company was known to HRDC and others as
Cinéscénie. It is also referred to as Cinéscénie
in Technical Report 'Q' in its Annex 'C'.

Strangely
enough, a Cinéscénie with a very similar description
was also operating in, and funded by, Prince Edward Island.
Following is its Internet description, almost exactly word-for-word
the same as the Francoscénie company in Ontario:

Dans
l'isle-du-Prince-Édouard, deux projets pilotes recevront des
fonds.

(1)
Cinéscénie acadienne de l'isle-du-Prince-Édouard
- 70 000 $

Le
Village acadien, de concert avec la collectivité rurale, se
propose d'élaborer et d'exploiter une cinéscénie
en vue de faire progresser le tourisme et la culture dans la
province.

La
cinéscénie combine un scénario et une mise en
scène faisant appel à de nombreux figurants à
l'intérieur d'un spectacle élaboré « son
et lumière »; elle met l'accent sur les effets
spéciaux (son, lumière, pyrotechnie et technologie
laser).

Pour
de plus amples renseignements sur l’’Initiative des
projets pilotes du Partenariat rural canadien, composer le
1-888-781-2222 ou consulter le site Web à l’adresse
www.rural.gc.ca

QUESTION
1 PROBLÈMES, INQUIÉTUDES ET QUESTIONS ENVIRONMENTALES.

ISSUE
1 ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, CONCERNS AND QUESTIONS.

We
write these words with hope -- with the hope that the elected
authorities will find a better, more viable way for celebrating
Franco-Ontarian heritage, for celebrating our ancestors' heroic
efforts at building their farms here, then later planting the Larose
Forest to save the land from wind erosion – our ancestors who
have continued to raise their children to have a healthy respect for
the Mother Earth which feeds us.

We
write these words in the hope that our younger generations, as well
as our older generations who built the land up, might better
understand the sincerity of our present actions with the signing of
the Kyoto Accord and better understand our commitment to honouring
our past as well as safeguarding our future by prescribing that we
all take a hand in saving our forests.

We
write these words in the hope that we will all recognize that
forests belong, not to the politicians, not to commercial interests,
not to the elites of society, but clearly belong to you and me, to
the common folks.

We
write these words in the hope that the elected authorities will take
whatever time is necessary to seriously consider that whatever
decision they arrive at in rejecting or accepting this company's
request for a zoning change will have impact, positive or negative,
those are the only choices, on the future generations of the region.

We
write these words in the hope that elected authorities will
seriously consider that the lack of information as well as the many
contradictions in the Francoscénie Company's presentation is
sufficient grounds for shelving the project until better
decision-making information is available and until clear indications
that other options and locations have been seriously considered.

We
oppose, without equivocation, the approval of zoning changes for a
353 acre site as requested by the Francoscénie Company to
permit the installation of a 353 acre Theme Park.

(Author's
note: there are two different mentions of environmental studies
throughout this document. The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act
C.37 requires that "Environmental Assessments" (EA) be
completed wherever federal public funds are spent. These
Environmental Assessment studies were NOT submitted to the HRDC.
This issue is addressed in A HOUSE OF CARDS item 1-c.

Then
there are "environmental technical reports " which were
for the most part preliminary reports prepared by a variety of
Consultants that were offered by the developer Francoscénie
to satisfy local United Counties of Prescott Russell. These are
mostly dealt with in Issue number 1 and in A HOUSE OF CARDS in item
1-j)

Following
is what the local population had to say to the authorities in
objecting to this insult to the intelligence, this present and
future travesty of the environment:

"municipal
authorities must also consider that the Environmental Study Report
is not only an incomplete DRAFT Report but that it only addresses
Phase 1 of the proposed project – the Company makes no
mention whatever
of the planned ensuing Phases 2, 3, 4, etc. which might have served
to justify the Company's zoning change request for 353 acres, i.e.
327 acres beyond the Phase 1 proposal before us; (09)

"With
a forecast of 2,500 visitors, very large amounts of water per day
will be used as waste water. This water will never be returned to
the water table due to waste processing being done OFF site. Who is
liable when homeowners’/farmers’ wells run dry? (12)

"The
Francoscénie Company's Report H) indicates that it is
proposed that diesel

generators
be used for providing electricity to the Theme Park's show and to
the planned restaurant(s) and facilities. Have the municipal
authorities which have to approve (or not) the requested zoning
change ever stood near a diesel generator turning at 5 to 8000 RPMs?
Does anyone think that the spectators will be able to hear the show?
And what about the hapless neighbours, farmers, livestock and
wildlife? (09)

"We
did a test at home and a car driving by on the highway, created 60
decibels of noise, ONLY 340 feet from our home on highway 8 from
one end of our lot to our back door. This proves how easily sound
travels in such a quiet environment as Larose Forest.

"We
did another test in which we played music from 25 watt speakers in a
portable stereo, at the end of our lot, at the edge of the proposed
open theatre lot, and could easily record the music on our back
porch recognizing a Genesis song from a radio station. That distance
was approximately 750 feet.

"The
watts of the speaker system that will be used for the open theater
will be upwards of 10,000 times more powerful than the portable
radio we used.

"How
will the wildlife react to this huge increase in noise volume?

The
coyotes for example, how do they hear above your decibels - this is
their way of commuting to others in their pack. The Small Brown Bat
population that makes its home in Larose Forest birth their young
from May to July. These bats feed on agricultural, disease
transmitting and other annoying insect pests, such as gnats,
beetles, crane flies, wasps and moths, eating thousands of times
their weight in insects per year. With the stage shows blasting
sound through the forest between 21:00 and 23:00 at night, the bats'
feeding patterns will be disrupted and the young will starve. This
will, if not wipe out the local bat population, will weaken it to
the point of annihilation by predators. If the bat population in
this part of Larose Forest is decimated, the Red Pine Forest will
then be diseased by the moths and beetles that harbour in and eat
the Red Pines, not to mention the damage to local farm crops by
increasing insect populations. The budworm infestation which
occurred a few years ago in Larose Forest will reoccur faster and
with more destructive results.

"We
understand that no one from the company who did the report on noise
pollution did actually come out and took any readings.

"Animals
do not like the explosive sounds made by pyrotechnics - we have seen
scared and scatter-brained reactions from our own pets. The
pyrotechnic noises will have negative effect on the forest wildlife,
possibly making them very nervous and skittish. Animals in this
mode are more prone to attack or flee. (There is also a likelihood
that the animals' reproduction will be severely affected)

"There
is also the added noise of the diesel generators that will be used.
These generators will be running long before and long after the
show, meaning that the noise level will not diminish significantly
at the end of the show. This will probably mean that the noise
by-law will have to be changed in order to allow for the high noise
level after 11:00 p.m. We would argue that noise after 11:00 p.m.
on a week day or weekend is not acceptable in a city area or a rural
community area such as this. (12)

"We
understand your power source will be generators. These generators
run on diesel fuel. Will the Francoscénie Company be cleaning
the soil, removing the soil that will be contaminated by the diesel
fuel?

"With
such a large volume of vehicles coming and going from the parking
lot will increase soil pollution from oil, gas, antifreeze and brake
fluid leaks. Have environment reports been done to calculate the
effect of so much vehicle traffic on the Larose Forest soil
ecosystem? (12)

"Where
will your waste water go? We understand, for the future, that the
Francoscénie Company plans to have a septic system close to
Black Creek which runs through other landowners’ properties as
well as through the United Counties' property.

What
will the environmental impact of the septic system be on the brook?
Who will be checking to ensure the system remains intact? How often
will it be checked? Who will pay if repairs are required? How will
property owners be compensated? (12)

"On
page 5 of the Francoscénie Company's Preliminary
environmental study, the author speaks of the site development. He
(or she) states that existing roads will be enlarged but that little
needs to be done to these to permit access. This is a nice
euphemism for road construction since these are presently one lane
logging roads which are dirt covered with some gravel.

"On
this same page, the author speaks of clear cutting of 65 hectares
(160.55 acres) not the 26 acres as stated on page 19 by
Francoscénie. Still on page 5, the author speaks of future
permanent lodgings, which have never been mentioned anywhere else!

"On
page 6, the author speaks to information received from the Ontario
Ministry of Natural Resources concerning the animal and botanic
species present in the forest and that none of these are rare,
unique or special. This information was received over the phone (as
stated by the author) and no documentation supports these findings
in the study.

"On
page 8, the author points out that there are no utilities servicing
the site in question. This means that there is no drinking water,
waste water treatment facilities, electricity or even phone service
available where the promoter wants to build the theatre. All of
these services are very costly to install.

"On
page 12, another reference to 65 hectares (160.55 acres) of tree
cutting and not 26 acres as on page 19 of the Francoscénie
document. Still on page 12, it is stated that the work area covers
0.6% of the total surface area of the forest, not 0.1% as stated on
page 17 of the Francoscénie document. This is 6 times the
area!

"Amendment
to the zoning and official plan as stated earlier, this is not a
study but merely a photocopy of the correspondence by the promoter
to the City of Clarence-Rockland and the United Counties of
Prescott and Russell. The first problem is that all the
documentation sent by the City and the United Counties is not
included.

"On
page 9, the box concerning private septic system is checked and has
a note of phase II. I remind Council Members again that the
promoter states publicly that 100% of waste water will be treated
off-site. The next question is where are the proposals for phase 2 ?
How can the City of Clarence-Rockland and the United Counties
accept to rezone 353 acres when they have plans for a 26-acre
project? (10)

"Preliminary
Assessment Report of Sound Propagation: The first question is what
is the expertise of Urban Aerodynamics Ltd.? Their name suggests
that they specialize in aerodynamics. On page 1, the author states
that the study is based on materials supplied

by
the promoter and on available literature. Who supplied Urban
Aerodynamics with the specifications and where did they get their
information?

"Still
on page one, the author states that he has not made any noise
transmission tests or readings on the site and that there is enough
information in the literature. He also mentions 3 references: 1a, 1b
and 1c. Why were these not included with the study?

"On
page 2, the author specifies that the sound system to be used is to
be of the

linear
speaker array type. He does not mention his familiarity or his
experience on these

systems
other than what he has found in the literature. He also does not
give specifications for

the
system or that the rated power output. The problem with this is that
the performance and

specifications
vary greatly from manufacturer to manufacturer and even from model
to model. Without the exact specifications for the proposed sound
system, there is no way that

the
study could be completed in a precise way.

"On
page 2, the author specifies a power output rating of 47 800 watts.
Yet on page 3, he tells us he used 20 000 watts for his
calculations. This is 42% of the power rating supplied by the
promoter Francoscénie Company! Taking into consideration that
the system of 47 800 watts will not be used at its full capacity, a
margin of error of 10% and as high as 35% or more is still present.

"On
page 2, the author states that the area where the show is presented
is in a 6 foot depression. He then goes on to say that with an
average height of 10 feet for the speakers, and that the height of
the berm and fence (14 feet), the speakers would be 10 feet lower
that the top of the fence. Does this mean that the speakers will
only be 4 feet off the ground where the seating starts? With an
average height of 10 feet, the top speaker would be 14 to 16 feet
over the ground level where the seating starts. For sound
reinforcement, this positioning is more in line with industry
practices for good sound propagation for the spectators. With these
clarifications, it can be said that the top most speakers will be
partly or completely projecting over the fence. Only on this point,
this study has a major flaw!

"All
residences mentioned in the study are on Boileau road. There is no
mention of the residences on Clarence-Cambridge road because they
are about 200 metres further away from the stage!

"On
page 4, the author writes that some noises from the stage, such as
small explosions, will be distinguishable from the normal background
noise. He also states that residents who live more that 1 kilometre
away will not hear anything. We can already hear the train going
through Casselman (about 10 kilometres away). (10)

"At
the public meetings, concerns were raised about Traffic, Vehicle
Usage and Parking. The math used in their documentation doesn’t
work! You cannot expect us to believe that 2500 spectators and
300-800 volunteers and performers (2800-3300 people) per night, will
be arriving and leaving in 30 buses (35 passengers avg.) (1050
persons) and no more than 400 cars (must average 4.375 - 5.625
persons per car)! Therefore, the area to be cleared for parking
will have to be much larger than they have proposed and the
statement that there will be little or no inconvenience caused by
traffic is incorrect. (02)

"From
a noise pollution perspective, can anyone imagine the noise that
fountain will make -- can anyone imagine the noise and fumes the
diesel generators driving the huge water pumps will make? (09)

"I
have listened, with interest to those who have been raising many
other concerns about this project, including but not limited to
environmental, ecological, safety and fire, water impact, sanitary,
noise, sociological, wildlife, traffic … etc. and I agree
with these concerns.

To
sum up my feelings regarding all of these worthy concerns I would
once again like to quote from The Francoscénie Company’s
own public information circular “L’écho d’un
peuple, Questions and Answers”

“This
project should prove to be an extraordinary tool for making people
aware of the importance of protecting the environment.”
(Editor's note: How bloody ironic!)

To
this statement I wholeheartedly agree! However, I am not convinced
and obviously neither are many local residents that this project
will protect the environment rather than damage it! It has however
proven to be a wake up call to many of us, that we must be ready to
analyze for ourselves what proposals are being brought to our local
governments and be prepared to take a stand to ensure the way of
life we envision for ourselves. (02)

'Solutions
are in our nature'
says the David Suzuki Foundation's letterhead.

In
2003,Dr. Suzuki warns that 'Nine of ten warmest years on record
have occurred in the last decade'.

"The
Senate gave its approval to the resolution supporting Canada's
ratification of the Kyoto Protocol on December 12, 2002. Now, almost
everyone knows that forests are the 'lungs' of our environment. By
approving a zoning change to permit the setting up of the
Francoscénie 353-acre Theme Park are the Prescott-Russell and
Rockland-Clarence Councils sending a signal to the local population
that the environment and the people living in that environment is
henceforth to be considered a second class area not deserving its
own clean air? No matter what Kyoto or the international community
says? (09)

"Impact
on Natural Resources : A human presence of 2500 visitors per
theatrical performance and tree cutting over 65 hectares according
to Dessau -Soprin study p.3, p.10 will have a negative impact on the
forest. This loss of habitat would be detrimental to plants and
wildlife present in location. Moreover such tree cutting could have
an adverse effect on adjacent standing trees due to disturbance of
soil drainage (i.e. starving roots of water and minerals).

This
massive human presence could increase the risk of forest fire and
put in peril both the natural resources as well as the security of
the local population.

This
amendment would set an important precedent that could influence
uncontrollable development in Larose Forest. This would also favour
development of Phase 2 of the Francoscenie project whose plans
remain vague ,unclear and undefined. This amendment would
effectively remove all possibility of objection to that phase of
development. (11)

_________________

(Following
is an extract [pages 4 and 5] from the Forestry News items in a
newsletter prepared by the Ontario Professional Foresters
Association. These pages are (are still?) available on the Internet
at http://www.opfa.on.ca/lnewnews.htm)

Larose
Forest

Update
Jan 8, 2003

United
Counties of Prescott and Russell will make a decision at the end of
February.

The
Environmental Impact studies are being translated into English and
reviewed by SNC.

The
Council of the Corporation of the United Counties of Prescott and
Russell and the Council of the Corporation of the City of
Clarence-Rockland held a public meeting on November 27, 2002 at the
Bourget Community Centre to consider a proposed amendment to the
Official Plan of the United Counties of the Prescott and Russell and
a proposed amendment to the former Township of Clarence Zoning
By-law No. 490 with respect to the Francoscénie project.

More
than 500 people attended the public meeting. The land use planners
presented the various aspects of the proposed amendments and more
than 40 people made oral and written
presentations
concerning the project proposed by Francoscénie. The majority
of the questions were directed to the various studies prepared by
Francoscénie in support of its project.

Original
Notice

The
studies are
(editor's note: the studies are no longer available) also
available on the Francoscénie Web site at:
www.francoscenie.ca There is a situation brewing in the Larose
Forest and the OPFA and CIF-OVS (Canadian Institute of Forestry--
Ottawa Valley Section. Contact Ms. R. Comeau (613) 234-2242) may be
interested to know that in the main block of the Larose Forest
(10,000ha forest south of Ottawa), 310 acres of land in Larose
Forest was given (editor's note: this statement still needs to be
confirmed) to the group by the United Counties of Prescott-Russell
for the Francoscénie Project (a theatrical/cultural show
about the history of Franco-ontarians in this part of the province).
The short term goal is to use approximately 26 acres of land in the
Forest to establish the parking lot for 500+ vehicles and build the
stage for the show. Most of the 26 acres will be cleared-cut. It's
not known at this time how they intend to use the remaining 284
acres; it, apparently, will only serve as a buffer zone. Their hope
is that the show will attract between 1,000 to 2,500 visitors and
600 volunteers per evening, three evenings a week from early June to
late August (as early as June 2003). They will also drain water to
create an artificial pond, mainly because one act will relate to
rafting, and also for emergency response in case of a fire. For your
information, 11 sites were examined for Francoscénie, all
located in the Larose Forest.

The
United Counties have made clear to the group that an environmental
impact study needs to be completed before the public hearing is held
for the zoning amendment. Francoscénie has hired a consultant
to complete the environmental assessment in Larose Forest. They
expect the study to be completed by November 13, the proposed date
for the zoning amendment meeting at La Nation municipality. The
community is divided on this initiative, conservationist concerned
that the project will have a negative impact on the environment.
Based on our information, no wildlife surveyor inventory has ever
done in Larose Forest.

On
November 27 the United Counties of Prescott-Russell is holding an
open house to discuss the project. The environmental studies will
also be released. The Prescott~Russell Stewardship Council is
debating the issue and trying to help the community separate emotion
from fact.

There
is a need right now to get expert opinions on issues relevant to
this project so that
not
only do they have environmental reports commissioned by the group
responsible the project. Issues include, financial implications
{this may result in favouring the project given the proposed annual
revenue the project of over $50-60K per year return to the Forest},
sensitivity of moose and other wildlife to disturbance {physical and
sound}, impact of biological and non-biological pesticides to
control mosquitoes. So far media coverage has not addressed these
issues and the community would benefit from hearing opinions on
these.

Are
there OPFA members willing to provide input to the Prescott-Russell
Stewardship Council and the United Counties of Prescott-Russell?? "

_________________

Although
no OPFA input could be found, a letter from Mr.
Brian Barkley,
General Manager, Eastern Ontario Model Forest Program did provide
his evaluation of the Francoscénie proposal to set up a 353
acre Theme Park in Larose Forest as follows:

"Director
Planning and Economic Development Department November 25, 2002

United
Counties of Prescott and Russell

59
Court Street, P.O. Box 304

L’Orignal,
Ontario K0B 1K0

Thank
you for the notice of the public meeting on November 27, 2002
concerning a proposed amendment to the official plan of the
Corporation and of the United Counties of Prescott and Russell and a
proposed amendment to the zoning by-law of the City of
Clarence-Rockland. Based on the information which we have received
to date, the Eastern Ontario Model Forest would not be in support of
these amendments. We would be very interested in knowing what
consideration has been given to other options that including
mitigating the loss of forest cover by identifying alternative
forest lands. We believe very strongly in the principle of working
with all concerned or impacted by such decisions to reach a
consensus. While this takes time to accomplish, we believe it is the
most appropriate way to proceed. A detailed strategy should first be
prepared for Larose Forest which outlines the long term vision for
the area before changes such as these are considered, which in the
long term may negatively impact upon or limit the opportunities
associated with Larose Forest. Experience in other areas with former
agreement forests indicate that this approach can be very
successful.

The
Larose Forest is unique because of its size, location, integrity as
a more or less continuous forest area and its history. It is a
tribute to the people of the community that the original vision of
Ferdinand Larose has been honoured and supported through to the
present day. Today’s Larose Forest illustrates very well the
concept of sustainable forestry with its balance of economic,
environmental and social values and long term perspective as
consideration is given to the needs of future generations.

Thank
you once again for the opportunity to comment and we would be
pleased to discuss our ideas with you in more detail. We would
request that we be notified of the decisions of the councils on this
matter.

Brian
A. Barkley, R.P.F.

General
Manager,

Eastern
Ontario Model Forest

Bill
Gilmour MP (Comox-Alberni) was most eloquent during debates on Bill
C-56 which

later
became Chapter 46 which was in turn integrated into the revised and
amended , (ref. Hansard 7432):

Bill
Gilmour MP (Comox-Alberni) avait discuté du Bill C-56 avec
éloquence. Ce Bill est devenu le Chapitre 46 qui a été
intégré dans la (ref. Hansard 7432)

'I
am pleased with the direction of this bill. It is a good start.
However there is a great deal of work to be done in the area of
environmental assessment. To summarize we need to be pro-active and
not re-active in our approach to the environment. Rather than
cleaning up our mistakes after the fact we must take steps to
prevent environmental damage before it occurs. We must get out of
the wait and see what happens approach and begin to look into the
future to make constructive and bold moves now.

'As
members of Parliament we must lead by example and do all that we can
to protect what is vitally important to the future of Canadians, our
own environment. We must ensure that the environment that we leave
to our children is as good or in better condition than that which we
inherited.

'Many
will recognize that this is the Brundtland definition of sustainable
development and in my view this is the direction in which we should
be heading. We must protect our land and our resources to ensure
that our children have clean water, sustainable forests and
unpolluted crop land. We need to ensure that when we build a bridge,
a hydroelectric plant or a landfill that it does not harm the
environment, that it does not affect our air, our waterways or our
lands.

'One
way to ensure that projects are safe for the environment is to
systematically identify potential environmental consequences of
projects before they are started. Unwanted environmental impacts on
people, their way of life and their livelihood must be minimized.
Environmental assessment attempts to predict the effects of
potential environmental proposals prior to their becoming a reality.

'The
federal role in environmental assessment has only recently expanded
to assess projects that have been approved by provincial governments
taking place on provincial lands. Under the Canadian Environmental
Assessment Act, assessments are applied to all proposals involving
federal money, land or responsibility, projects for which the
federal government holds decision making authority. Federal Court of
Appeal decisions on the Rafferty-Alameda dam in Saskatchewan and on
the Oldman River in Alberta confirmed this point.

'When
a provincial assessment has been conducted, every project, decision
or responsibility requires an environmental assessment where some
federal concerns have not been dealt with or where the federal and
provincial processes are not on an equal footing.

Recently
we have seen a number of projects challenged on the grounds that
they involve federal jurisdiction.

'There
are currently four types of environmental assessment to address
different projects and circumstances. These four types, as the
minister stated earlier, include screening, comprehensive study,
mediation and review by an independent panel.

The
first two, screening and comprehensive study, are the most
preliminary and account for approximately 30,000 assessments per
year or 99 per cent of all federal projects assessed. Screening is
usually applied to small scale projects that are quite
straightforward. Comprehensive study is usually applied to larger
scale, environmentally sensitive projects.'

(Following
is an extract of a comprehensive Environmental Sustainability report
prepared by Maja van der Velden for the Prescott
and Russell Stewardship Council. To illustrate just how
'comprehensive, look at the Table of Contents' Chapter Headings to
have a good idea of what was examined and reported on: Forests,
Soils, Flora and Fauna, Wetlands, Rivers and Streams, Air Quality,
Environmental Services (Water, Waste, Sewage)

PRESCOTT
& RUSSELL 2001

"Towards
a Sustainable Community"

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY:

Towards
a Sustainable Community, the State of the Environment Report for
Prescott and Russell 2001, investigates the state of Prescott and
Russell’s Forests, Soils, Flora and Fauna, Wetlands, Rivers
and Streams, Air quality, and Water, Waste, and Sewage and it
assesses the sustainability of activities in these sectors of
Prescott and Russell’s environment.

The
state of the environment in Prescott and Russell is described
through the analysis of baseline data and information (the situation
as we know it today) and the quality of stewardship of the
environment, with stewardship defined in terms of the effectiveness
of policies and practices in securing sustainable development (i.e.
what these policies and practices indicate about how we intend to
manage the environment in the foreseeable future).

The
result of this examination shows that there is a crucial lack of
local and provincial regulation to support the sustainability of
activities in each of the sectors. Secondly, although
community-based initiatives and voluntary programs have a positive
impact on the state of the environment, Prescott and Russell is
lagging behind in comparison with other comparable regions when it
comes to such activities as recycling and participation in voluntary
programs such as the Environmental Farm Plan or the Managed Forest
Tax Incentive Program.

In
summary, our forest cover still diminishes; the South Nation river
does not comply with the Provincial Water Quality Standards; current
manure and pest control practices continue to adversely affect our
soils, ground and surface waters; draining and industry-level peat
extraction continues to degrade our wetlands; habitat destruction as
a result of clear-cutting, logging, industrial and agricultural
run-off, and pesticide use endangers the diversity of our flora and
fauna; and one of our local industries is one of the top-10 %
polluters in Canada.

The
results of this examination are also expressed in a report card. Six
of the seven sectors do not score higher than a D. The seventh one,
Water, Waste, and Sewage, because of its high risks of significant
damage to the environment and people’s health, scores the
lowest, an F.

The
good news is that the new Official Plan for Prescott and Russell,
once it is fully implemented, will provide the basis for new
regulations by the municipalities. Although lacking a fully
integrated approach to sustainable development in Prescott and
Russell, the Plan offers the communities of Prescott and Russell an
important tool to improve the sustainability of our activities.

Prescott
and Russell, March 2001

_______________________

(here,
in part, is what the author had to say about our Prescott-Russell
forest cover)

EVERY
TREE COUNTS!

A
100 years old beech tree, 25 meters tall with a 15 meters crown
diameter, produces enough oxygen in a year to meet the needs of 10
people. If that tree is cut, 2,700 young trees, each with a crown
volume of 1 meter, need to be planted to achieve the same oxygen
benefit.

On
a scale of A to F, Prescott-Russell’s
performance on woodlands is a D+.
The letter grade D refers to a situation in which no sustainable
development principles are being met and that there is therefore a
risk of significant damage to the environment. The vast majority of
Prescott and Russell’s old-growth forests have disappeared.
The McAlpine Woods was a candidate for old-growth classification but
after significant logging in recent years it is no longer considered
a candidate for this status. Overall, the forest cover of
Prescott-Russell is still decreasing. The good news is that under
the new Official Plan, Prescott and Russell will have Significant
Woodlands Policies. But since the Significant Woodlands Policies are
appealed at the Ontario Municipal Board, it is not yet possible to
analyse the effectiveness of these policies. The plus (+) sign
refers to community participation in the protection and enhancement
of forests and woodlands. Annual tree-planting activities by local
organisations and community-based groups are one of the most popular
environmental activities in Prescott and Russell.

Prevent
further fragmentation of, and damage to, significant woodlands
by proposing to municipalities the adoption of by-laws that allow
the protection of individual trees as well as prohibit lot creation
on significant woodlands. For example, Lanark Country, a
municipality located west of Ottawa, has a forest cover of more than
50% of its total area. It has adopted a tree-cutting by-law to
preserve individual trees on public and private land. Tree-cutting
by-laws can be used, for example, to prevent the cutting of trees
next to rivers and streams, the cutting of old-growth trees or to
prevent the cutting of one special tree. For Prescott and Russell a
forest cover of at least 30% is desirable (EOWMS, 2001).

This
report is prepared by: Maja van der Velden - Agenda nfaP.O. 328
Vankleek Hill, Ont. K0B 1R0
Tel. (613) 678-2097
Email.
maja@globalagenda.org

Prescott
and Russell Stewardship Council

31
Rue Paul Street,

C.P./P.O.
Box 430

Alfred,
Ontario K0B 1A0

Tel.
613-679-0936

Fax
613-679-0929

http://www.ontariostewardship.on.ca/prescott/

___________________________

"Par
la présente, nous jugeons inopportun la modification de
zonage décrite selon l’amendement au règlement
mentionné en rubrique. À notre avis, cette dérogation
compromettrait assurément la conservation et la mise en
valeur du patrimoine naturel de la forêt Larose.

En
effet, cet écosystème forestier renferme une richesse
et une diversité écologique exceptionnelles. Durant
l’année, ce milieu constitue des habitats essentiels
pour la faune et la flore. La valeur de cette ressource est
inestimable dans le contexte d’urbanisation du territoire.
Or, la modification de zonage menacerait dramatiquement le statut de
protection attribué au territoire couvert par la forêt
Larose. Selon toute vraisemblance, la perte d’habitat prévue,
dans le cadre du projet de la Francoscénie, nous apparaît
inacceptable à l’intérieur du périmètre
de conservation. Cette modification perturberait inévitablement
l’équilibre écologique qui subsiste dans cette
forêt de même que nuire au bon déroulement des
activités pour l’ensemble des utilisateurs concernés
ou non par le projet.

Pour
ces raisons, l’adoption de l’amendement au zonage
causerait ainsi un précédant irréparable à
la forêt. Cette imposture permettrait donc l’apparition
d’une brèche au niveau de la réglementation. En
conséquence, le développement sporadique, déconcerté
et incontrôlé de la forêt s’effectuerait au
détriment de ses ressources naturelles et des bénéfices
retirés par leurs utilisateurs.

Afin
de préserver l’intégrité écologique
de la forêt Larose, nous nous opposons

fermement
à la demande de modification du zonage soumise aux élus
de la Cité de Clarence-

Rockland
pour les lots 26, 27 et 28 de la concession 3. Tout compte fait,
ceux-ci devraient

envisager
de renforcer son statut légal de protection plutôt que
de l’affaiblir. De ce fait, la

création
d’une zone tampon autour de la zone de conservation
permettrait d’assurer la réalisation de projets
nécessitant des infrastructures lourdes à l’extérieur
de la zone sensible.

À
la suite de ces considérations, la mise en valeur de la forêt
Larose débute, à prime abord, par sa protection légale
et son utilisation rationnelle à long terme. Seule cette
initiative de conservation assurera la sauvegarde du patrimoine
écologique et culturel, la pérennité des
ressources fauniques et floristiques ainsi que le maintien de la
biodiversité des écosystèmes naturels pour les
générations futures. Ne vous contentez pas de
regarder seulement les arbres mais essayez plutôt d’y
voir toute la forêt! (01)

___________________________________

Dear
Dr. David Suzuki

Please
help Larose Forest of eastern Ontario :

Larose
forest is the only significant forest in Ontario, east of the
capital. It was planted in1928 to reclaim wasteland from erosion
after decades of excessive logging and poor farming practices. It
now supports a wide bio-diversity including 82 bird species.

The
United Counties of Prescott-Russell are strongly considering an
Official Plan amendment, to enable the re-zoning of a 353 acre
section of the Larose forest from "Conservation zone " to
'Conservation with Exception 2, zone." This zoning amendment
would allow a private interest group Francoscénie to set up
an outdoor theatre as Phase 1 of a multi-phased tourist destination,
on public land owned and managed by United Counties of
Prescott-Russell, which technically belongs to all taxpayers of
Prescott-Russell.

The
theatre would bring in 2500 visitors each Thursday, Friday and
Saturday evening, 10 weeks each summer, for at least the next 20
years (renewable). Re-zoning for this intrusive, massive project
will have a negative impact on the environment and local quality of
life. We ask your support to convince elected officials to help find
a more suitable site for this otherwise worthy cultural project.

ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT

According
to studies released Nov21,2002, the cutting of more than 160 acres
of red pine and diversified bush to make way for phase 1, a 15-acre
staging area, a 15-acre massive parking lot (400+cars and 20-30
buses), and more for a restaurant, kiosk , trails, widening and
construction of roads, artificial pond, wells, etc. and a much less
publicized phase 2 eventual 25-acre sewage treatment site, (possibly
contaminating the Black Creek which is close by), an 85 acre future
theme park, will cause loss of habitat and range for resident
species, fox, coyote, deer and the only moose heard in south eastern
Ontario, loss of flora, possibly the White Trillium, emblem of
Ontario, forest fragmentation detrimental to migratory and resident
birds (82 species reported by Ottawa Field Naturalist Club) noise
from the show, crowds, fireworks, and generators will dislodge
wildlife, possibly causing more road collisions, chase birds, brown
bats away for ever.

The
'preliminary' environmental study by the developer took only 2
months in the fall, not a good time to observe birds or nesting or
flora, and a phone call to the Ministry of Natural Resources who
had no inventory of Larose Forest, proposed surface drainage to
control mosquitoes. This will rip out root systems, remove natural
mulch, destabilize trees and starve remaining roots of water and
minerals, further drying forest floor, reverting to erosion and
desert conditions.

FOREST
FIRE

The
proposed project imposes an extreme increased fire risk to forest
and bordering residents due to:

a)
weekly crowds of 7500 in coniferous forest already stressed by
two summers of declared Level 2 droughts according to South Nation
Conservation Authority

b)
according to Ontario Tobacco Research Unit, 1 in 3 adults is a
smoker, without counting young people:

c)
alcohol will be consumed on site (publicly stated by developer June
26 meeting 2002)

d)
forest floor covered in thick needle carpet

e)
local wells may go dry (Francoscenie will draw at least 150,000
litres /week from an already summer depleted water table

f)
security measures based on 12 volunteer firefighters and volunteer
supervisors( for 20+years? ) and wells, pond ,and stationary pumps

RISK
TO HEALTH

High
exposure to West Nile Virus in an area known for mosquitoes,
topography being flat and swampy. To calm tourist fears, extensive
pesticide use will be needed: to control mosquitoes and black flies,
surface waters will be drained,( further drying forest floor) and
redirected toward pond or Black Creek which will be sprayed with
expensive BTi larvicide also destroying dragonfly larvae (more
likely cheaper chemicals such as Malathion) which will affect food
chain, and impose cumulative health risks to nearby residents
increased air pollution(400+cars 30 buses), possible well water
loss and/or pollution and imposed high anxiety

RISK
TO PROPERTY AND LIFE

Increased
ongoing risk of fire and criminal activity targeting isolated
residents due to creation of site that may attract gangs (smoking,
drinking, drugs) after hours and off season

Infringement
of rights, Imposition of increased risk, forest fragmentation,20+
years summer weekend noise and massive tourist intrusion will rob
every nearby resident of quality of life and the presence of birds
and wildlife (the very reason people chose to live near
conservation area) re-zoning takes away people's right to object to
Phase 2, effectively giving the developer carte blanche. Technical
Study Reports provided by the developer (except the one on sound)
were all in French, many were only preliminary reports, 6 days
before a public consultation meeting on November 27, 2002 (may
account for low public awareness and attendance), politicians favour
re-zoning, (hoping for the $70,000 / year based on revenue promissed
by the developer on his website) showing loss of control over
public land and lack of commitment and respect for conservation,
quality of life of affected residents

rezoning
sets precedents, leaves forest vulnerable: thin edge of the wedge,
other no-risk forest sites are being suggested but not considered.

Your
urgent reply would be appreciated as a Council vote is to be taken
on this issue in March. (11)

01
END

QUESTION
2 PROBLÈMES, INQUIÉTUDES ET QUESTIONS ÉCOLOGIQUES.

ISSUE
2 ECOLOGICAL ISSUES, CONCERNS AND QUESTIONS.

C'est
un fait que la compagnie francoscénie avait complètement
ignoré les besoins pour une étude écologique.

Un
rapport très pertinent qui aurrait peut être consulté
intitulé 'Rapport Informationnel #42, 1998-1999 sur l'état
de la Forêt modèle de lEst de l'Ontario', qui avait été
rédigé par Lorne Johnson avec la collaboration de Paul
Heaven de la firme Glenside Ecological Services pour le groupe Forêt
modèle de l'Est de l'Ontario, en date de février 2000.

Ce
rapport de 83 pages nous fait part des résultats de ces
études dans l'avant-propos de

son
rapport,

"L'un des objectifs les plus importants qu'il faut accomplir
dans le cadre de la phase II (1997 à 2002) de l'entente entre
la Forêt modèle de l'Est de l'Ontario et le
gouvernement du Canada (Service canadien des forêts) est le
maintien d'écosystèmes en santé par les
propriétaires fonciers au moyen de pratiques d'aménagement
durable des forêts. En vue d'atteindre cet objectif, il est
essentiel de surveiller et de mesurer les forêts sur une base
périodique.

Le
premier rapport sur l' état de la Forêt modèle
de l'Est de l'Ontario fournit des renseignements repères au
sujet de plusieurs mesures ayant trait aux attributs écologiques,
sociaux et économiques des forêts de l'Est de
l'Ontario. Il s'appuie sur les meilleurs renseignements disponibles
à l'heure actuelle, qui sont recueillis d'un grand nombre de
sources. Les rapports subséquents tiendront compte de
renseignements supplémentaires et fourniront les preuves
nécessaires pour évaluer l'efficacité des
pratiques d'améagement durable des forêts.

Le
present rapport s' inscrit dans un cadre élaboré par
le Conseil canadien des ministres des forêts, qui sert a faire
des comparaisons avec les autres forêts modèles du
Canada.

Ce
document a été préparé par Lome Johnson,
consultant en foresterie d'Ottawa, à la suite d'une analyse
initiale effectuée en collaboration avec Martin von Mirback,
du Centre for Forest and Environmental Studies, de Comer Brook
(Terre-Neuve). La préparation du rapport a été
supervisée par le Comité des sciences forestières
de la Forêt modèle de l'Est de l'Ontario. Nous esperons
que les futurs rapports répondront plus étroitement
aux besoins de nos nombreux propriétaires fonciers et, dans
cet esprit, nous attendons de recevoir vos commentaires afin d'en
améliorer le contenu. "

Les
six critères d'évaluation écologiques offerts
par Glenside sont particulièrement utiles et importants:

1)
DIVERSITÉ BIOLOGIQUE.

La
diversité biologique désigne la variabilité qui
existe parni les organismes vivants qui se trouvent dans nos forêts.
Le maintien de la biodiversité est l'un des principes
fondarnentaux de l'aménagement durable des forêts. Il
repose sur la notion de conservation de toutes les composantes de
nos forêts en vue de maintenir leur productivite et leur
resilience face aux perturbations.

Condusions
significatives:

Pourcentage
de la supericie fcrestière. La réduction du couvert
forestier de la Forêt modèle est probablement la
répercussion la plus importante de l'établissement
humain sur les conditions naturelles de la forêt. En 1880, le
défrichage des terres agricoles avait diminué le
couvert forestier à moins de 30 % dans 32 des 45 cantons
répertories de la FMEO. Aujourd'hui, le couvert forestier a
légèrement augmenté et se situe à
environ 34 %.

Pourcentage
de I'aire forestière intérieure.

Certaines
espèces ont besoin d'une zone tampon forestière pour
assurer leur protection contre les prédateurs et les espèces
envahissantes. Lorsqu'on supprime une zone tampon de 100 m de toutes
les aires forestières définies a I'aide du Système
d'information géographique (SIG), on estime que la Forêt
modèle contient une aire forestière intérieure
de 201 757 hectares. Ce chiffre représente 39 % de l'aire
forestière totale. En tout, on estime que 34 % des boisés
de la région abritent une aire forestière intérieure.

Fluctuations
dans le temps des populations d'espèces choisies.

Les
populations d'oiseaux chanteurs ont été analysées.
Parmi l'échantillon choisi, la population de trois espèces
de lisière ou de lisière et d'intérieur vivant
dans la FMEO a sensiblement augmenté depuis 1987. Aucune
tendance significative n'a été détectée
dans le cas des espèces d'intérieur.

L
'analyse des occurences d'espèces d'oiseaux dans les vastes
boisés non aménagé et non perturbés
révèle des tendances négatives pour quatre
espèces d'intérieur et des tendances positives pour
six espèces d'intérieur et de lisière. Bien
qu'il soit impossible de tirer des conclusions au sujet des
populations d'oiseaux à I'extérieur de ces sites sous
surveillance, le déclin de quatre espèces
d'intérieur dans leur habitat essentiel est préoccupant
et justifie une enquete plus poussée.

2)
SANTÉ DE LA FORÊT

Le
maintien de la santé de la forêt est une condition
préalable importante pour une saine gérance et une
utilisation durable de nos terres forestières. Les forêts
sont jugées en bonne santé lorsque leurs processus
écologiques inhérents se déroulent normalement
à l'intérieur de la variabilité naturelle.

Conclusions
significatives :

Perturbations
et stress.

Tempête
de verglas de 1998: Du 4 au 9 janvier 1998, la pire tempête de
verglas de mémoire récente a ravagé la région.
Les boises qui abritaient des espèces de succession
anciennes, comme le peuplier fau:x-tremble, le peuplier hybride et
le bouleau b]anc, ont été gravement endommagés.
Les autres feuillus ont subi des dommages variab]es par endroits :
des peuplements ont été complètement dénudés
de leurs branches fines et principales, tandis que d'autres s'en
sont tirés sans trop de dégats. L'étendue des
dommages causés aux conifères variait d'une espèce
à ]'autre; les plantations de pins rouges et de thuyas
occidentau:x ont été les plus durement touchées.
Le pin blanc, l'épinette blanche et le sapin baumier ont été
relativement épargnes.

Maladies:

Le
chancre du noyer cendré est un nouvel arrivé dans ]a
Foret modèle et plus de 90 %

des
sites répertoriés montrent des signes d'infection. La
maladie hollandaise de l'orme, qui a

decimé
les populations d'orme dans les années 60, s'en prend
maintenant au:x nouvelles

générations
d'orme.

Insectes
:

La
livrée des forêts et la tordeuse des bourgeons de
l'épinette sont les insectes qui ont

le
plus sévi dans les forêts de l'Est de l'Ontario. L
'infestation de livrée des forêts la plus

récemment
signalée s'est produite en 1996, se limitant toutefois à
une dé0fo]iation sur 1,646

hectares.
La tordeuse des bourgeons de l'épinette a récemment
causé des dommages plus

étendus,
soit une défoliation sur 15,755 hectares signalée en
]998. Les ravages de ]a spongieuse sont plus serieu:x, avec la
défoliation ]a plus étendue dans la Forêt modèle
(32,861 hectares) en 1986. La spongieuse est revenue de plus belle
dans la région. Après six années sans
défoliation modérée ou grave, on a signalé
que la spongieuse avait causé une défoliation sur
1,388 hectares près de Charleston Lake en ]998.

3)
SOL ET EAU

Le
sol et I'eau jouent un rôle fondamental dans la croissance de
toutes les plantes. Le rnaintien de la qualité des sols et de
I'eau est essentiel pour permettre aux forêts de demeurer en
santé, résilientes et aptes à résister
au stress causé par I'humain et la nature.

Conclusions
significatives :

Zones
riveraines.

La
couverture végétale naturelle dans les zones
rivéraines réduit le ruissellement et l'envasement
dans les cours d'eau, stabilise les rives et prévient leur
erosion, et contribue à la régulation de I'habitat du
poisson en maintenant I'eau à des temperatures basses. À
I'aide du SIG, on a calculé le pourcentage de la couverture
végétale naturelle dans des zones tampons de 15 m
entourant tous les lacs, rivieres et ruisseaux de la Forêt
modèle. Les comtés de Lanark et de Leeds et Grenville
offrent le degré de protection des cours d'eau le plus élevé,
grace à près de 40% de couverture végétale
naturelle à I'intérieur d'une zone tampon de 15 m. Les
comtés de Prescott et Russell et de Stormont, Dundas et
Glengarry présentent le degré de protection des cours
d'eau le plus bas, soit 21 %.

Capacité
tampon des sols de la FMEO

La
capacité tampon désigne la capacité des sols à
neutraliser les précipitations acides. Les sols reposant sur
le sous-sol paléozoique, qui s'étendent principalement
a l'est de I'autoroute 15, ont généralement une
capacité tampon élevée. Les sols associés
au bouclier précambrien, à l'ouest de l'autoroute 16,
ont une faible capacité tampon.

Acidification
des sols

Malgré
la capacité tampon élevée que présente
une grande partie des sols de la région, la recherche suggère
que les depots acides dépassent actuellement le seuil
critique au déça duquel aucune conséquence
néfaste n'est prévue à long terme.

INCIDENCES
GLOBALES

Les
incidences globales, comme le changement climatique et la pollution,
sont des questions brullantes au Canada comme dans le monde. Les
forêts jouent un role important au sein des cycles écologiques
planetaires en recyclant l'eau, le carbone et l'oxygène de la
Terre, ainsi que d'autres éléments vitaux. Les
incidences comme le rechauffement planetaire et la pollution peuvent
menacer la capacité de recyclage des forêts. II est
important de prendre conscience des incidences reliées aux
phénomènes comme I'ozone de la basse atmosphere et le
réchauffement planetaire pour assurer la durabilité
des forêts et leur adaptation aux demandes exercées
sur elles.

Condusions
significatives :

Ozone
de la basse atmosphère

Avec
les précipitations acides, l'ozone de la basse atmosphère
est l'un des deux principaux polluants atmosphériques
régionaux en Ontario. Sur une base périodique, les
concentrations d'ozone de la basse atmosphère dans la FMEO
dépassent le seuil critique, causant la décoloration
des feuiIles et la défoliation précoce chez les
espèces d'arbres sensibles.

Changement
climatique

Le
changement climatique représente un facteur déterminant
de la durabilité de nos forêts. Le réchauffement
du climat peut influencer I'emplacement des espèces d'arbres
et aggraver l'intensité des incendies et de la sécheresse.

5)
AVANTAGES POUR LA SOCIÉTÉ

Les
forêts et les boisés de l'Est de l'Ontario nous
apportent de nombreux avantages. D'un point de vue commercial, ils
foumissent du bois d'oeuvre et du sirop d'érable, génèrent
des emplois dans le secteur forestier et des loisirs et contribuent
indirectement à I'économie de biens d'autres façons.
Les forêts remplissent de nombreuses fonctions récréatives
et revetent une importante culturelle et spirituelle aux yeux des
habitants de l'Est de l'Ontario.

Condusions
significatives :

Volume
de production de grumes de sciage et de bois à pate :

Les
scieries et les usines de pâtes de l'Est de l'Ontario ont
consommé plus de 460000 m3 de grumes de sciage et de bois a
pâte en 1998. Le bois a pâte représente 80 % (369
000 m3) du

volume
acheté, les grumes de feuillus 17 % (79 800 m3), et les
grumes de conifères 3 % (12 400

m3).

La
plus grande partie de ce bois (73 % ou 336 800 m1 est importée
de I'exterieur de la région, dont la majorité de
l'Etat de New York. Les terres privées locales fournissent
environ 25 %

(114
300 m1 du volume total de bois acheté, tandis que les terres
de la Couronne representent

uniquement
2 % (9 654 m1.

Prix
régionaux du bois :

Les
espèces de feuillus les plus précieuses de la Forêt
modèle sont le cerisier tardif, le chêne rouge et
l'érable à sucre, dont le prix moyen se situe aux
environs de 540 $ par 1 000 pieds-planche (no. 1 commun). lIs sont
suivis du bouleau jaune, de I'érable rouge, du frêne,
du chêne blanc, du tilleul d' Amérique et du noyer
cendré, dont le prix moyen est de 330 $ par 1,000
pieds-planche (no. 1 commun). Une comparaison entre la FMEO et la
région de Bancroft révele que les prix des grumes sont
plus ou moins semblables.

Emploi
dans l'industrie forestière :

Bien
que les secteurs liés à la forêt constituent
toujours une riche source d'emplois, I'emploi total dans la Forêt
modèle a diminué de 18 % entre 1991 et 1996.

6)
RESPONSABILITÉ ET ENGAGEMENT

Pour
mesurer notre succès en matière d'aménagement
et de développement durables des forêts, il faut
transcender les préoccupations biologiques, écologiques
et économiques. En fin de compte, la mesure de notre succès
concerne les gens. Elle conceme chaque individu, notre façon
d'accomplir nos activités quotidiennes et l'organisation de
notre societé.

Condusions
significatives :

Participation
des collectivites à l'aménagement forestier :

Les
règlements relatifs à l'abattage des arbres sont l'un
des moyens par lesquels les gouvernementaux locaux peuvent
règlementer et améliorer les pratiques forestières
sur les terres

privées.
Deux des cinq paliers supérieurs du gouvernement municipal
dans la Forêt modèle (comté de Lanark et
Municipalité régionale d'Ottawa-Carleton) ont adopté
des règlements relatifs à I'abattage des arbres.

En
vertu de la Loi sur l'amenagement du territoire, les Comtés-Unis
de Prescott et Russell et la Municipalité régionale
d'Ottawa-Carleton ont tous deux entrepris des démarches
visant à definir et a protéger les boisés
d'importance dans leur région.

___________________

"To
eliminate mosquitos, pesticide spraying will be necessary. Dr. Joe
Schwartz of McGill university issued caution against repeated use
of pesticides even biological Bti. Nine Ottawa doctors are concerned
about the cumulative effects of pesticides on the human immune
system.. Pesticides also have a devastating effect on other life
forms in the food chain such as birds, amphibians and reptiles. I do
not accept the imposed potential health risks to of repeated
pesticide spraying on our family. We live in the country to breathe
clean air. We do not accept imposed pollution of the hundreds of
vehicles and thirty buses expected each show. (11)

____________________

La
Presse Canadienne, dans un article du 13 mars annonçait en
partie

"Le
virus du Nil occidental (VNO) est en Amérique du Nord depuis
1999 et les experts sont maintenant en mesure de constater que le
meilleur moyen d'en controler les effets devastateurs demeure
l'épandage régulier de pesticides. Très peu de
cas de VNO ont en effet été observés là
où des traitements ont été donnés contre
les moustiques et leurs larves. (...)

Ici,
(au Québec) c'est avec le Bti (Bacillus thuringiensis
israelensis) un larvicide inoffensif pour l'environnement et la
santé humaine, qu'on arrive à controler à plus
de 90 % les populations de moustiques avant même que les
larves n'aient le temps d'éclore. Les autorités n'ont
toutefois pas eu encore recours à cette technique pour
controller la propagation du VNO au Quebec.