Heres a press release we sent out last week - lifting the moratorium on high capacity drilling is a line in our red soil that we must not cross. When it comes to water, there is no Plan B says Green Party. It is clear that the potato industry on PEI has launched a concerted effort to persuade Islanders and our elected officials that not only is high volume extraction of our groundwater entirely safe, but entirely necessary for PEI potato farmers to survive and compete in the marketplace. “We are told that this industry has the weight of science (and a couple of corporate giants, and some people close to the premiers office) behind its push to lift the current moratorium on high capacity water extraction for potato irrigation,” says Green Party leader, Peter Bevan-Baker. “Lets not be too hasty to accept their arguments. Has their scientific approach ever done harm to our soil, our surface waters and our ground water in the past? Why would we trust them to protect our water resources in the future? Show us the science and the source of your so-called facts,” continued Bevan-Baker. Unlike surface water, groundwater does not recharge readily. A dry or damaged aquifer may never fully restore itself. High capacity wells on the island are already used for washing and processing potatoes, and decades of over application mean that the aquifer is already heavily contaminated with nitrates and other chemicals. Will the Government tell us how much water is being used by the potato industry now? Does the Department of Agriculture have any idea? How much water are they proposing to pump from these new wells? It would seem that theyll only need the water when rainfall is scarce, which also happens to be exactly when the aquifers are not recharging. Once again this is short sighted, narrow minded planning of public resources to benefit the few. “When it comes to water, there is no Plan B,” continued Bevan-Baker. “Our water situation on PEI is precarious, and without proper studies on the quality and quantity of this precious resource, we must practice the precautionary principle and do nothing that may threaten what is left. Lifting the moratorium on deep well high capacity drilling is a line in our red soil that we must not cross.” The Green Party believes that PEI needs to make a choice: do we continue down the road of corporate monoculture or do we try something different? Something that improves not diminishes the organic content of our soils; something that protects our precious water not pollutes and degrades it; something that produces safe, nutritious food; something that provides a good living for farmers; something that preserves our rural communities; something that will provide thousands of good jobs; something that will launch PEI into a healthy, prosperous, sustainable future. “Just imagine how many jobs, how much economic activity, how much cleaner our air, water and soils would be, and how much more prosperous and sustainable our island agricultural sector would be if we make the shift now towards an organic island,” concluded Bevan-Baker.
Posted on: Wed, 22 Jan 2014 20:25:58 +0000
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