Scott Reid Defends Mitchell Creek
June 23, 2005Ottawa – Following a meeting with concerned residents of South Frontenac at the site of Mitchell Creek, local MP Scott Reid made the following statement in the House of Commons:
“Mr. Speaker, the Township of South Frontenac recently announced a plan to replace the 75-year-old bridge over tiny Mitchell Creek. Originally the plan was for the new bridge to be the same height as the old one. The low clearance of the existing span allows canoes and small boats to pass under the bridge, but keeps out jet skis and other more powerful watercraft.
“By good fortune this has preserved the creek’s pristine environment. Local nesting sites, for loons at the water’s edge and for bass just under the surface, have been destroyed elsewhere by boat wakes and turbulence but not in Mitchell Creek. This is about to end.
“Transport Canada wants to force the township to raise the height of the bridge because it has decreed that Mitchell Creek is a navigable waterway that must be opened to boat traffic. Leaving aside the additional $60,000 cost, Transport Canada’s rationale is preposterous. Mitchell Creek connects two small lakes that are completely cut off by dams from external waterways, besides which the creek is so shallow that a non-swimmer can wade across it.
“I therefore call upon the ministry to revoke this decision and allow the municipality to build a bridge like the one that has served the community and the environment so well for 75 years.”
For more information or to speak with Mr. Reid
Please call (613) 257-8130 or (613) 947-2277.
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