A huge volume of water flows up and down the Salish Sea.
There is no scientific reason for secondary treatment of Victoria’s sewage. The sewage is greatly diluted, and no one swims in the Strait because it’s too cold. No one drinks the water because it’s salty.
Tourists are already coming to Victoria. They are not going to stop coming because we continue to do what we do with our liquid waste.
Tourists might stop coming to Victoria because the Inner Harbour ceases to be picturesque because of the new mega-marina.
Modern humans are causing one of the great mass extinctions. Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide will cause more global warming and more extinctions.
Constructing the secondary sewage treatment plant will worsen the problem: turning limestone into cement generates a huge amount of CO2, as does the transportation needed for a major construction project. Running the secondary treatment plant requires a lot of electricity.
The decision about building the secondary treatment plant can be postponed until there is a method and a need to harvest the valuable phosphorus, nitrogen and organic material in liquid waste.
With regards to the proposal to build a secondary sewage treatment plant in Greater Victoria, and the proposal to build a pipeline for refined tar across the province, it feels like we are living in a dictatorship -- the will of the people is being ignored.
Robert Shepherd
Saanich