Civic Alert: The boulder rolls

That’s how a joyous Karin Marks reacted to the phone call from Nathalie Normandeau.

As leader of the suburban mayors, she was enthused by the Municipal Affairs Minister’s gesture in phoning to explain the government’s intentions about agglom reform.

“It is the first time we have heard from her, except in response to intensive lobbying,” said Marks. “It was a big change in attitude.”

The minister explained that she would table legislation in the National Assembly this week and warned Marks “not to get excited” when the bill contained no details. It would merely meet parliamentary deadline for a bill to be deposited so that is could become law before the session ends in June.

Details would be added as ministerial discussions with local leaders were completed.

“I’m not under any illusion that we will get everything we would like,” admitted Marks. “It’s most unlikely, too, that we will form a consensus with Montreal, given recent precedents.”

Marks’ current target is to clear the way for the suburbs to work supportively with Montreal on regional issues.

That is the biggest need. A stronger Montreal region is necessary for us to maintain our national and international status.

“The government will have to force a solution. At least, it will show movement on the issue.”

Premier needs breakfast, jokes wife

Jean Charest tried to match Andrew Carter’s professional folksy high spirits when he made an early-morning appearance on the morning-man’s CJAD programme last Friday.

The Premier’s wife, Michelle Dionne, took over the leader’s phone — a first, said Charest — for her own interview. “Would you like me to give the phone to the kids, as well?” the Premier jollily asked.

Dionne admitted being upset that her husband typically left home early each morning without breakfast. “It's the most important meal of the day,” she agreed with Carter.

Charest skips some facts

For all the frivolity, Carter ran through the issues and Charest answered them with a politician’s polish — he’s being doing it for 23 years, his wife said.

When the interviewer raised the question of the undelivered demergers, Charest gave the flawed answer from the election campaign.

“We did follow through,” the premier claimed. Of course, he did not mention the 200,000 people who were denied their majority vote, nor the thousands who were disenfranchised by the electoral list not suited to his referendum rules.

Nor did he admit to having set up the aggloms to punish the demerging towns, although he readily admitted that there were now “difficulties with their functioning. What needs to be fixed “will be fixed!”

But is he already looking for an out? “As long as everyone realizes they are not going to get exactly what they would like, we will sit with the mayors and put this issue behind us.”

So he should. On the West Island, Geoff Kelley dropped 10,000 votes. In the West End, Lawrence Bergman lost 5,000 votes from Côte St. Luc and Hampstead. Even Jacques Chagnon was down by almost the same amount in Westmount-St. Louis.

As Charest said about something else, “We got a message on March 26.”

Needs to meet the neighbours

Hopefully, Charest produces a budget more accurately than he comments on Montreal’s geography. Responding to Carter’s prodding on the agglom reforms, Charest talked about the main areas of concern being “the West Island.”

Surely he realizes that Westmount is not on the West Island! Nor are TMR, Côte St. Ham-West and, certainly not Montreal-East! No wonder Quebec City bureaucrats and politicians repeatedly misunderstand Montreal. What chance does a municipal affairs minister from the Gaspé have?

There are major differences in lifestyles between the West Island and the West End, starting with commuting — a 60-plus minute trek or a half-hour dash!

When Mario Dumont made the same mistake while speaking to the Westmount Rotary Club in July, it could be excused. He is a former farmer from Rivière-du-Loup. But where have Michelle and Jean Charest pitched their tent for the last nine years?

Perhaps it’s time they got to know their neighbours!

Carson’s work continues

Sunday, May 27, marks the centenary of Rachel Carson’s birth and we should all be celebrating the occasion! The Healthy City Project has a busy schedule of May activities, and is dedicating them to the memory of the woman who first alerted the public to the growing menace of environmental pollution.

Time magazine chose Carson as one of the most influential 100 people of the 20th century — alongside Albert Einstein, John Maynard Keynes and the Wright Brothers.

Her 1962 book 'Silent Spring' was a great awakening. It told the story of what happened in Duxbury, Mass., when an attempt to control mosquitoes with pesticides led to the absence of birds.

“There was a strange stillness,” Carson wrote. “The few birds seen anywhere were moribund; they trembled violently and could not fly. It was a spring without voices.... only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh."

She traced other examples of overuses of pesticides, and Canadian laboratories were among those who corroborated her findings.

Publication of the book was viciously attacked by industry, and overcoming both this kind of denial and resistance to change became features of a growing environmental movement.

Nevertheless, President John Kennedy began the process that led to the banning of DDT use in the U.S. However, manufacture continued to be allowed, as well as its controversial use in some developing countries

Locally, the town of Hudson pioneered restriction of all chemical pesticides and fought its right to do so through the Supreme Court. Westmount has not used pesticides on city land for nearly two decades and has had general legislation since 1994.

Eventually the Montreal megacity adopted similar laws, and Quebec led the country with control legislation sponsored by André Boisclair, as environment minister, and implemented by his Liberal successor, Thomas Mulcair.

We have come a long way, thanks to Carson’s alert.

An interesting idea was put forward on CBC Radio’s “The Current” this week that the present renewed wave of environmental interest follows that of the late eighties. That led to increased attention to the issue in schools.

The children who were in the centre of this are now the new consumers. As young parents themselves, they are concerned about the health consequences on children, as well as the future sustainability of the planet.

- Community activist Don Wedge can be reached at calert@web.net. His columns are archived at www.westmountexaminer.com, go to Opinion.