United response to Government's failure

Our united response to the Government's failure to address our issue:
 
The Friends of the Nicola Valley, now almost a 1,000 strong (and supported by a local petition of some 3,000) have been struggling hard for many months now to safeguard our local environment. Our visible protests along Hwy 8 have rallied a great deal of community support and awareness on this issue. So many have expressed their joy at working together (First Nations and non-Native peoples of the Valley) to bring about change - to work towards a future that will ensure health and security for everyone living in this wonderful valley.
 
What is our goal? Simply this - to end all importation of sewer sludge into our Valley, and to immediately have the facility on Sunshine Valley Road dismantled, and the sludge piles taken back to the communities that trucked it here. This is a modest request. This is a reasonable request. Mostly however, it is a fair request! Other communities must look after their own sewer sludge. We will not be the dumping ground for the concentrated end-product of other people's water treatment facilities. We will not stand idly by and watch the heavy metals and other toxins accumulate in our forest, on our lands, or in our waters.
 
This area is known for its beauty and its healthy environment. Our tourism economy will only suffer as we get buried deeper and deeper by other cities' toxic waste. But more than this is jeopardized by this reckless practice. First Nations Elders have spoken of how they are gravely concerned about how traditional hunting and gathering in the forests have been disrupted. They have spoken about not being able to drink from the streams they once did, or eat the herbs and berries they once collected. This land application of sewer sludge is a disgraceful and disrespectful attack on this population and their way of life.
 
Together, as Friends of the Nicola Valley, we are going to continue this battle to end this insidious practice. We know we are doing what is best for our valley, for our people, and for the future. Many of us have never protested before, never carried a sign before, never written to our MLA's before, but this issue has galvanized us to stand firm and fight for what is right. Rest assured, we will not stop this protest until our goals are addressed and our valley is safe.
 
Sincerely,
Don Vincent
Merritt BC