WHO ARE WE?
ARESST is a group of ordinary, taxpaying Greater Victoria residents, deeply concerned about the local and marine environments, who believe that potentially disastrous mistakes are being made in the rush to develop a secondary sewage treatment system. MEET OUR BOARD MEMBERS
OUR MISSION
To stop the Provincial Government from forcing an unnecessary, costly, and environmentally harmful system onto Greater Victoria taxpayers. The directive to produce a new sewage treatment plan has already led the Capital Regional District to spend millions on planning and design. It will soon require the commitment of hundreds of millions [most likely billions] for construction and operation – all at a time of cutbacks in everything from libraries to health care.
CONVICTIONS WE HOLD IN COMMON
- Victoria should have an integrated waste-water management system which deals with sewage and storm-water in the manner best suited to the local environment.
- The system should be based upon sound science and engineering, presenting well thought-out solutions to clearly identified problems in a cost-efficient manner.
- The deadline-driven plans being promoted by the CRD do not meet these criteria; hundreds of millions are being wasted on inappropriate solutions to non-existent problems while the real threats to our environment are ignored – all at a time of severe fiscal constraints.
WHAT WE ARE FOR
There is an obvious alternative. ARESST is committed to retaining and improving “the most efficient and environmentally sound system in North America” * – the combination of preliminary treatment and deep-ocean discharge that we currently have in place. This is a system which for decades has been monitored and studied without ever a hint of damage to the ocean ecology or a risk to human health.
*Dr. Jack Littlepage, Biological Oceanographer,
paper presented to the CRD Waste Management Commissioner, 1989
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Success will depend upon a significant public-relations and lobbying campaign, including media advertising. But we can’t do this without support, especially financial support. Consequently, we are inviting you to join our organization and/or to make a donation to our campaign.
You can join and/or contribute online, or by mail, to:
1230 Old Esquimalt Road,
Victoria, BC V9A 4X8
250-478-2869
To read our constitution and bylaws, click here.
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