NEW BRUNSWICK :: IS OUR WAY OF LIFE WORTH PROTECTING? The government of New Brunswick has decided without citizen consent to undertake the exploration and development of the unconventional shale gas industry through hydraulic fracturing in order to “create jobs and increase provincial revenues”. The scale of the proposed shale gas industry will affect 20% of the province directly and everyone in the province indirectly for decades and generations to come. The “science” of this industry is complex and does not have a positive track record where undertaken elsewhere. The unconventional shale gas industry will result in 24/7 truck traffic of water, toxic fluids and toxic waste water, light, noise and dangerous air pollution. Full development would industrialize New Brunswick with tens of thousands of wells on thousands of well pads permanently altering or destroying our treasured natural environments. Speaking out with confidence against this industry can be daunting for the average citizen.
Less daunting is speaking about what we know best - our way of life. More important to us who have chosen New Brunswick as our home is how this industry will affect the main reason we live here - why we love this place. How will the shale gas industry affect this place in which we have chosen to live, raise our families and conduct our business? Will there be positive results to industrializing our cities, our rural environments and way of life, or have we been selected to be
the losers for the benefit of a few wealthy investors (certainty) and to fill government coffers (yet to be determined)? Imagine your children and grandchildren attending their public school when drill pads can be located 1640 feet (1/3 mile) from their school. Imagine buying a home or selling your home when drill pads can be located 820 feet (1/6 mile) from your home or the water and land has been contaminated by the industry. Imagine your parent or grandparent living the final years of their lives when drill pads can be located 1640 feet (1/3 mile) from their care home or hospital. Imagine raising your family or living your golden years when drill pads can be located 820 feet (1/6 mile) from your home. Imagine having a family picnic at a beach, in a public park or at a playground when drill pads can be located 820 feet (1/6 mile) from your table. Imagine operating a bed and breakfast, a motel or a campground when drill pads can be located 820 feet (1/6 mile) from your business. Imagine starting a new business or selling your business when drill pads can be located 326 feet (.06 mile) from your business or the water and land has been contaminated by the industry. Imagine the health of the New Brunswick fishing industry when drill pads can be located 326 feet (.06 mile) from the shore and waterways. Imagine that the NB Rules and Regulations for the Gas and Oil Industry offer no compensation to land owners for lost property value resulting from unconventional oil and gas exploration and development. Loss of clean, drinkable water will be compensated only when the landowner can prove the loss or damage of water was directly the result of the shale gas industry’s operations - lots of luck! Imagine a government economic plan based upon the promises of a foreign corporation that will dramatically alter the health and durability of the cultures, natural and human communities and geography of New Brunswick for decades and generations to come. Imagine a different economy, a collection of diversified local economies, an economy that would be measured not only by the potential of jobs and revenues, but also by the uniqueness of places, and the health of ecosystems and human communities where people live their lives and perform their work. Imagine not speaking up or not taking some form of action to protect the health and the way of life of our families, our neighbors, and our communities in our place - New Brunswick! Do you own property or operate a business within the Cocagne River Watershed? Find out by going to the Government Lease Map ( http://geonb.snb.ca/ong/ ). Go to the "More" button and add "Civic Address". As you zoom in on the map to where you live, street numbers will appear. Sometimes the "satellite" view can aid in finding the address. Kent South NO SHALE GAS Kent Sud 5 September 2013
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