The Times Advocate, 2004-04-14, Page 44
Exeter Times–Advocate
Wednesday,April 14 2004
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EDITORIALS
Martin feeling
the heat
rime Minister Paul Martin's recent cam-
paign -like travels across the country show
he's scrambling to drum up support for his
Liberals.
It's clear, in light of Adscam or Sponsorshipgate
(whichever label you prefer) Canadians are tiring
of their hard-earned money being wasted by
their federal government.
And whether or not the waste of at least $100
million in the recent spending scandal is Martin's
fault, he may ultimately pay the price of being
booted out of office in the next federal election.
Martin's election campaign co -chairperson
recently admitted Martin was travelling through-
out the country because the Liberals aren't satis-
fied with the amount of public support they have.
Recent polls show while the Liberals are still the
most popular party in the country (with 37 per
cent), the figure is the lowest in years. The
Conservatives come in second, at about 10 to 12
percentage points lower than the Liberals, while
the New Democrats are at about 15 per cent.
What these numbers translate into is a Liberal
minority government.
That the Grits are feeling the heat is a good
thing. For too long, Canadians have given the
party a free ride simply because the alternative
(the Tories, or the Reform and the Alliance)
seemed even worse. Since auditor general Sheila
Fraser's report — which detailed how tens of
millions of dollars in government contracts went
to Liberal -friendly firms in Quebec for basically
no work — the other parties don't seem so bad to
Canadians.
This also is a good thing because hopefully it
will force the Liberals to clean up their act and
govern with some accountability.
Important meeting
An important meeting is being held this
Thursday at South Huron District High School.
Starting at 7:30 p.m., the school council is host-
ing "Teenagers: Under the Influence," a discus-
sion featuring a panel of experts who will exam-
ine the influences, issues and concerns teens face
everyday.
As you've no doubt already read in previous
issues of the Times -Advocate, the forum is the
result of a concern over how bullying impacts
teens.
This is a good opportunity for local residents to
get involved in their community and have a clos-
er look at what teens face these days. Discussions
like these can help open everyone's eyes to the
pressures teens face daily.
About the Times -Advocate
Alku
WEYE BEEN ORDERED
To CRACK DOWN
oN HATE
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2004 Distributed by Canadian Artists Syndicate Inc.
Much ado about water
A cursory glance at the front page of last week's
Times -Advocate might give you the impression local
municipalities are busy trying to ensure their drinking
water is safe. In fact, it's becoming a necessary obses-
sion.
All three front page stories in last week's T -A dealt
with drinking water and you can bet there will be
more to come. There was South Huron devel-
oping a bylaw to ban a certain type of water
pump they fear could jeopardize the local
water system. To the north, Bluewater dis-
cussed water quality in the St. Joseph region,
while to the south, Lucan Biddulph is wrestling
with higher -than -estimated costs for a project
to nm a water pipeline to Granton.
In addition, South Huron is planning a $12
million project to construct a pipeline from
Lake Huron to upgrade the local drinking
water supply, a project Bluewater may join to
serve its Hensall residents.
The reason for this fixation on water? One
word: Walkerton.
The Walkerton tragedy in the summer of 2000
changed everything for municipalities and their water
systems. New regulations, water testing and increased
costs have forced municipalities to make water safety
paramount. This is a good thing, although it's costly.
Justifiably so, the aftermath of Walkerton sees a soci-
ety in which people are skeptical of their local water
supply. Can they trust their local water? Do they need
to buy bottled water? These are legitimate questions in
the wake of what happened in Walkerton.
By the actions of area municipalities, local residents
can see their councils are trying to ensure water
remains safe. South Huron, for example, could have
upgraded its drinking water system for a few million
dollars cheaper had it decided to go with a
groundwater system instead of Lake Huron
water. But the groundwater system left too
many variables — it's a more complicated sys-
tem and is more susceptible to environmental
disasters, changes in government regulations
and maintenance costs. Councils are usually
encouraged to take the cheapest route during
projects — hence the policy of accepting the
lowest bids — but in the case of drinking
water, deciding to go with the more expensive
Lake Huron pipeline was the correct choice.
It was revealed in the 2001 Walkerton
inquiry that complacency is one reason E. coli
ended up in the drinking water, killing seven people.
Complacency that the system was OK, that groundwa-
ter was safe and that such a tragedy could never hap-
pen in small-town Ontario. But in the wake of
Walkerton, complacency is no longer an option and
municipalities are trying to make sure the mistakes of
the past aren't repeated.
SCOTT
NIXON
AND ANOTHER
THING
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