Letters to the editor

A4

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I was reading an article a few weeks back in reference to the province looking for tradespeople and wanting them to stay in the province after obtaining training in this field. However, this is not the case.

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Most trades shops only want tradespeople who have two years experience or more. What I don't understand is how these people are supposed to get training and jobs in the province if no one will hire them.

My husband recently completed a six-month training course in welding. And out of 52 students, not one of them have a job in the welding field. Why would people want to stay in the province after receiving training if no one will hire them? This is why all the graduates head out west, as companies out there are taking people right off the streets and giving them jobs as well as the training to expand their careers.

If the government wants to keep people in the province, they need to offer these people programs and jobs, otherwise they can't need tradespeople that bad. If that's the case, then we shouldn't educate these people to be in these fields.

MIRANDA EVANS

Saint John

Stop developing UNB woodlot

As a concerned citizen and a supporter of Fredericton's "Green Matters" campaign, I am greatly disturbed by the rapid development that has already destroyed acres of UNB's prided woodlot, and that has been given the OK to continue to destroy this environmental landmark as time goes on.

The UNB Woodlot, priding itself as being an active teaching and research base for forestry students, is also "a provincially designated wildlife refuge and is a favourite place for people of Fredericton and surrounding communities to run, jog, walk and enjoy nature." This is a direct quote from the University of New Brunswick's Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management home page, which goes on to list the large variety of wildlife and plants that call this woodlot home. This UNB webpage, which beams of pride for their woodlot, sure doesn't make sense when paired with the UNB Board of Governor's decision to allow 50 per cent of the woodlot to be destroyed and privately developed over the coming years.

As the New Democratic candidate for the New Maryland-Sudbury West riding, I urge UNB to reconsider the consequences of their actions. Please submit this land to comprehensive environmental assessment, and realize that you are putting all of the wonderful aspects of the woodlot at great stake. I also call for a moratorium on any further development of the woodlot. Big box development is not the answer to Fredericton's "Green Matters." We must raise our voices together to save our environment, and ourselves.

MICHAEL MCCAFFREY

NDP Candidate

New Maryland-Sudbury-West

Regulation aided energy industry

On Nov. 2, 2006 the Public Utilities Board set the price of furnace oil at $0.7994 (minimum) to $0.8160 (maximum). That day on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the price of light sweet crude oil closed at $60.36 a barrel, and heating oil closed at $1.74 a gallon.

On Oct. 25, 2007 the Energy and Utilities Board set the price of furnace oil at $0.8972 (minimum) to $0.9640 (maximum). That day on the New York Mercantile Exchange the price of light sweet crude oil closed at $90.46 a barrel, and heating oil closed at $2.43 a gallon. On Oct. 22, 2008 the Energy and Utilities Board set the price of furnace oil at $0.9988 (minimum) to $1.0550 (maximum). That day on the New York Mercantile Exchange the price of light sweet crude oil closed at $66.75 a barrel, and heating oil closed at $2.06 a gallon.

It is obvious that when the New Brunswick government changed the name from "NBPUB" to "NBEUB," it also changed the interest this board was set up to serve from the public's to that of the energy industry.

Mr. Graham, the ethical way to be raising revenues for the province of New Brunswick is on the floor of the provincial legislature.

JOHN STAPLES

Fredericton

Gagetown victims are dying off

This week has been an emotional roller-coaster ride for most victims of CFB Gagetown toxic chemical spraying and the Agent Orange Association of Canada. There was the election's questionably poor results, more then a few association members understandably experiencing the signs of total emotional burnout, and then there is the seemingly never-ending loss of more Gagetown victims and their families.

The stalling tactics, the appealing of every court decision which doesn't go their way, and the complete indifference of the government of Canada with the Gagetown victims and the class action lawsuit into CFB Gagetown and the toxic chemicals used there is achieving (albeit slowly) what 52 years of spraying didn't - that being the elimination of any witnesses, and thereby litigants, in the lawsuit.

Today, the only thing which the victims of Gagetown can depend on is that there will be many more deaths, burnouts of Canada's forgotten military causalities, and the Canadian civilian collateral damage that all victims of CFB Gagetown face, thanks to New Brunswick's and Ottawa's "See no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil" handling of the Gagetown issue.

Stephen Harper's attitude seems to be that if they ignore this issue long enough the cries for justice will die down. This could more properly be described as "will die off." Problem solved.

CPL. KENNETH H. YOUNG CD (RET)

Nanaimo, B.C.

Go nuclear? No nuclear!

We spent a whole year telling Premier Shawn Graham and his crew that we did not want uranium mining in this province. The reasons were many, but the main concern was the heath of the people and the environment.

We have spent the last 10 years telling both parties that we do not want a second nuclear reactor at Lepreau. The reasons were the same, plus we cannot afford to pay for a unit that is going to sell electricity to the U.S. for less than what we would have to pay. Have we even paid for the first unit?

Now, Premier Graham wants to make our province a dump site for nuclear waste. We would take all the spent fuel rods and bury them in our ground. These fuel rods are thousands of times more deadly than the ore they want to mine, and we know what we think of that idea!

If this nuclear waste can be reused, then ship the waste from Lepreau over to this British company, have them turn it into new fuel and buy it back from them. Let's hope it is not the same company we bought our submarines from.

If this were done three major problems would be solved.

We would be rid of all the nuclear waste which is on site at Lepreau.

We would have new fuel to keep Lepreau going.

There would be no reason to mine for uranium in the province.

BERNIE LANDRY

Rexton

Support new playing fields

Having the courage to say "No," is important, but sometimes you need the courage to say "Yes."

Councillors Toumishey, Parker and Quartermain, along with Mayor Purcell probably thought they were acting courageously when they voted against reaffirming the funding for new sports fields in St. Stephen, but I wonder whose interests they thought they were representing. It certainly wasn't the 24 groups that made submissions to the Citizens' Recreation Forum initiated by the previous mayor and council.

Those groups, whose membership would number in the hundreds, if not thousands, made their priorities for recreational development in St. Stephen very clear. Every single one of those groups expressed support for the Civic Centre project, but the second most frequently identified need was the development of new sports fields.

New ideas are often good, but a sense of history is also valuable. The comments of the naysayers suggest that they have either misunderstood or are unaware of the wishes expressed by the presenters to the former council. Further, Councillors Parker, Toumishey and Quartermain seem not to know that protracted discussions about the fields have already been held with School District 10, and have resulted in nothing but disappointment and frustration.

This new municipal government certainly ought to respect the wishes of the groups who presented, and implement the recommendations of the Citizens' Forum, even if they were expressed to a previous Council. I urge them to reverse their decision and implement the recommendations of The Citizens' Recreation Forum.

HERB DUPLISSEA

St. Stephen