Dear Editor,
Mayor Mark Goetz and his councillors must be breathing a sigh of relief, but under their breath are grinning from ear to ear. Why? The Municipality of South Bruce voted “yes” by only a 2.4 per cent margin indicating South Bruce is “willing” to carry on with the DGR (deep geological repository). The 69 per cent voter turn out meant that the council did not have to make the decision. The mayor’s comment following the referendum results “I wasn’t expecting it to be that close” should wake up the council to really think. But will they?
Mayor Goetz is now hoping for unity in the community. He says he hopes the community will rebuild and work together. Mayor Goetz says “I want to make sure that the people with concerns, you know, they’re looked after.” How is that going to done? The opponents to the project that have been called idiots, fear mongers, ill informed, not willing to listen, etc., will remember that. The information searched out and obtained from respected, knowledgeable, reputable people by the “no” side was ignored because the information did not come from the NWMO (Nuclear Waste Management Organization), so it was not credible. How will the “no” side heal when the mayor and councillors, and the NWMO, had refused to participate in an information session sponsored by the “no” side. Is the “yes” side, plus the mayor and council, the CLC, the South Bruce Exploration Team, all supplemented by the NWMO, really going to listen to those concerns that have already been presented, were noted and filed (away). Do you think the people directly affected by this project and tried to make their situation known, will ever accept the situation?
The mayor and council, along with the CAO, will be smiling on Nov. 12 in the South Bruce Council chambers for the next photo-op of signing into effect the binding referendum. Then the waiting continues.
Will the Saugeen Ojibway Nation be willing? Will the NWMO select South Bruce or Ignace or maybe even both?
The DGR project is on-going, so Mr. mayor and council don’t put too big a smile on your faces. A 2.4 percent win is not really a reasonable mandate for wanting to proceed with the DGR coming to South Bruce. Remember, almost half the community which you, Mr. Mayor and councillors also represent, are saying “no.”
Good luck with the unifying.
S.A. McDonald,
Culross/Teeswater
