On September 29, 2010 the Gravenhurst Banner published this letter to the editor. Our responses to the quotes are below in blue.
Leaders of the Save the Bala Falls (STF) group have done an excellent job of rallying their cause to anyone who will listen…
The only reason why the “rallying” is working is because the public demands it. You can’t make people rally. This is a huge wrong that needs to be righted.
… tried to achieve their objectives by bullying their opposition …
The only “bullying” is to the proponent (and we’re sorry this reply needs to be terse, it would be delightful if we had the time and opportunity to interactively discuss this in a more friendly forum). The proponent has hired consultants, government lobbyists, and technical experts. We must be strong to meet this well-financed challenge. Given that most people don’t have the time to follow this issue closely, we must show the side of the story which the politicians and the proponent neglect to mention.
… innuendos about potential bad outcomes.
What innuendo is required to point out the danger of a 45′-deep, 30′-wide water intake just downstream of where inexperienced people dock their boat or people displaying poor judgement illegally jump off the railway bridge. What innuendo is required to point out the concern of approving a power station at the Bala Falls when all three of the power stations at and north of Bracebridge have barbed-wire fencing and the Mill Stream power station in Bala recently had sharp-tipped chain-link fencing installed. No, these are well-founded and real concerns. There is no need to exaggerate the concerns or spread rumours, we have documented them.
They tell us that the project will ruin the town and the Bala Falls.
Well yes, taking 94% of the water from the falls would ruin them. People won’t come to Bala to see where the falls used to be or to see a concrete power station with rocks piled up the side, even if there are a few shrubs planted on top.
In reality, the island where Swift River hopes to build the generating plant is not a beautiful “sight”.
… could be designed and landscaped in such a manner as to draw more tourists …
People come to Bala to see the natural beauty of Muskoka, even if it is just bedrock and trees. Hauling away 1,700 dump trucks loads of blasted rock, and cutting down every tree west of the highway on Burgess Island can’t be the start of a good thing. People can see artificial landscaping on top of the condominium parking garages in Toronto.
Unless the MNR and Swift River are fabricating what they are telling us, which I do not believe, the final outcome will be an acceptable one and, in fact, if we all work together with a positive vision, could leave the area in much better shape than it is now.
As detailed in our technical report and elsewhere at SaveTheBalafalls.com, the proponent’s lack of information and evasive responses, do not provide any justification for optimism. This is business and money, plain and simple. Just like signing any contract, the time to get answers is before any approval to proceed, and we don’t have the answers.
The economic impact study is not yet completed, but it is possible that this project could be a plus for the area – not negative or neutral.
The questions in the Economic Impact Study’s survey shows it is unlikely to actually consider the short- or long-term impact of the project on the businesses of the area, so the information gained from it will not be of much value. The “questions” spend more words soliciting business than presenting what the situation would be during and after construction and asking useful questions so businesses could actually provide meaningful information. The information requested on this topic had to fit into one small text box, there was no opportunity to save and later return to this after one thought about it, and once the survey was submitted there was no way to review, print, or re-read one’s responses, nor warning that clicking “Done” was the end of the survey and was final.
They ignore the fact that neither the township nor the district has a formal say in the project
The Township (that recommended the District consider providing District land to the private developer), and the District (that acted on this recommendation) have a very formal say in this – they can say no.
…creating revenue for the district.
The time to negotiate this is before there is any committment to proceed, but we understand this hasn’t even been initiated yet. This process is out of control and needs to be stopped.
… wants the District to rescind this offer to lease.
The district councillors did what they could …
By our District council agreeing to provide District land for the project, all agencies and higher levels of government get the clear message that we want the project, and they take their lead from that. We need to send a clear message that we don’t want this project. This is the opposite of what has been happening, and that is why we need different politicians.
Let’s work together to make the Bala Falls area more beautiful …
We tried to work with the proponent and agencies to investigate how the project could be done in a less dangerous and damaging way, such as the south channel. But we are told that the way the process works is that the only decision being asked of the Ministry of the Environment is whether Option 2, as currently proposed should proceed. So our only option is to say no.