Re: U.S. ripping us off on water, B.C. Views (Jan. 7)
I once wrote a letter to the Saanich News suggesting Tom Fletcher should change the name of his column but after his latest one about the “U.S. ripping us off on water,” I almost feel I should retract my words.
This is an issue all of B.C. should have the same view on and an extremely important one at that. It’s not clear if Bill Bennett gave the ten year notice to exit the agreement but he certainly should have. I don’t think we could ever actually deny the U.S. access to our water as it would ultimately lead to an invasion. We should however fire the warning shot that we want a fair dollar for the resource.
Having just flown back from Peurto Vallarta, I saw nothing but desert out my window for almost the entire trip until we got into Washington state. Lake Mead created by the Hoover Dam is so low on water that the dam is almost useless and California is screaming for more to feed the crops. We pay top dollar for the produce from there and yet give them the water for pretty much free. It’s totally crazy and will only get worse. The time to act is now. Way to go, Tom, for highlighting this ridiculous situation that I’ve ranted on about for decades to mostly deaf ears.
Matt Taylor
Saanich
