| APRIL NEWS: On Easter Monday morning a group of environmentalists raced through a forest to put themselves between two bulldozers and a stand of ancient trees. The forest they were protecting was not on a coastal island in BC; it was in St. Boniface, MB. The anxious environmentalists were not the 20-year-olds you might expect. They were mostly retired men, a former fireman, an ex-pilot, and an industrial designer. One of our members stood with one hand vainly trying to call to a halt a giant D-7 bulldozer as he held a cell-phone to his ear and frantically called for media witnesses. Sadly, over a half-acre of 100-year-old oak trees was quickly destroyed. The media arrived too late to stop the developer's illegal plan. Did you know about this hidden forest before this happened? Few did. Its very obscurity saved it for a long time, but the developers and their heavy machinery have finally arrived. The result is a 75 foot by 300 foot swathe through the Bois des Esprits, a clearcut from the open fields to the top of the Seine riverbank. Reporters from Radio Canada, the WFP and CKY did arrive to catch the end of the trail of destruction. The 100 year old oaks were unceremoniously pushed into the open, frozen field for disposal. No fine furniture will be made from their splintered remains. The sheltered deer runs have been severed for at least a generation.The fait accompi that the developers and their powerful friends have long desired has been accompished. But the battle is not over. These trees are, we hope, redeemed from insignificance by being the martyrs that we need to protect the rest of the forest. Ladco threatened many times to raze the entire forest if their terms were not met. These men, men that we sat with in good faith for over a year, have washed their hands of SOS and the Bois des Esprits. The board of SOS met, consumed several bottles of very good homemade wine, and made sober plans for the future. We resolved not to be cowed. We vowed to pursue all political and legal means to stop Ladco and their silent partners from destroying Grade A habitat. We encourage you to contact your fellow board members, your local politicians, the media, friends in environmental, charitable and service organisations, co-workers and family. We ask you to encourage them to come to our meeting at Morrow Gospel Church at 755 St. Anne's Rd. at 7PM on April 24th. We will show you our consultants Powerpoint presentation on the park concept. We will also show filmed evidence of the effects of corporate greed, civic indifference and political expediency on the small remnant of the forest that remains of the Seine River Greenway. Bois des Esprits will be saved. The Southglen Bridge will be stopped. The time for talking about doing something is over. It is time to get to work. |