Seasonal Celebration of Non-Profit Community Groups
and local Artisans Slocan Park Hall December 2nd, 2018

The community has many hard-working non-profit groups run by volunteer Boards of Directors, committees and members. Volunteer work done by our friends and neighbors, for various community causes, includes the ongoing task of fundraising. Many local non-profit groups do not have charitable status and a tax deduction incentive is not available, making fundraising more challenging.

The community of non-profit groups and local artists are invited to help with their fund raising by having a table at a Seasons Celebration at the Slocan Park Hall on December 2nd. Tables for non-profits are free and we invite these groups to bring information and fundraising items and use a free table to distribute and celebrate with the community. Tables for local artisans are by donation and we invite artists to contribute a sample of their artwork as a donation.

Set up will be at 10:00 and doors will be open from 11:00 to 4:30. There will be a Food Booth open throughout the day. If you are interested in a table please call 250 226-7324.

Watch for our advertisement in the Valley Voice the week of November 28th/29th. Hope to see you there. This opportunity made available by the RDCK Discretionary Fund and the Columbia Basin Trust Sponsorship Program, organized by the Perry Ridge Water Users Association.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world, indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” American Cultural Anthropologist

The Petition reads…            Sign and Send the Petition

To: The Honorable the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, in Legislature Assembled

 The Petition of the undersigned residents of British Columbia states:

 THAT the remaining forests on Perry Ridge have been identified on GIS cover maps as some of the last intact areas in the southern portion of the West Kootenay region, a connectivity corridor between Kokanee Glacier and Valhalla Provincial Parks;

 THAT according to International Union for the Conservation of Nature, forests are one of the most important solutions to addressing the effects of climate change. Approximately 2.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide, one-third of the CO₂ released from burning fossil fuels, is absorbed by forests every year;

 THAT the remaining forests on Perry Ridge, in the Slocan Valley, BC need protection to absorb carbon dioxide as part of the solution to Climate Change;

 THAT Perry Ridge has been identified as an important cultural wetland by the Sinixt Nation with identified archaeology sites;

 THAT Perry Ridge is a unique geological fragile land form and provides domestic drinking and agricultural water to hundreds of farms and homes along the base of the mountain;

 THAT the residents of Perry Ridge have a right to enjoyment of their homes and protection of their properties without the increased risk of landslides, resulting from forest removal;

 THAT Perry Ridge is part of the tourist scenic visual corridor along Highway 6, Rails to Trails and the Slocan River;

 Your petitioners respectfully request that the Honorable House remove the remaining intact forests on Perry Ridge from the working forest and declare it a Conservancy.

Dated  2nd day of  November 2018
Perry Ridge Water Users Association

Eco Reserve Petition Nov. 2nd 2018

Visit the Perry Ridge Water Users Association table at the Slocan Artisan’s Market…

…and support water protection. Raffle Tickets for this beautiful, hand woven rug (32” x 65”) made by local artist Dianne Carter will be on sale throughout the summer and the draw will be at our annual BC Rivers Day Celebration September 23rd, 2018. Tickets are 3 for $10.00 or $3.50 per ticket.

Perry Ridge Water Users Invites the Public to Celebrate the Water Planet on Earth Day – World Water Day Videos 

WORLD WATER DAY VIDEO COLLECTION

A U.S. senator named Gaylord Nelson came up with the idea for a “national teach-in on the environment” after witnessing the ravages of the 1969 oil spill in Santa Barbara, Calif. Hoping to mobilize the politically active student community, he chose April 22nd (falling between Spring Break and final exams) as the official date. On that day in 1970, more than 20-million Americans took to the streets — as well as campuses, parks, and other public spaces — to demonstrate in support of a healthy, sustainable environment. By the end of the year, the United States Environmental Protection Agency had been created and the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts had all passed. 

Two decades later, in 1990, Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage. Earth Day 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. 

Now, Earth Day is the largest secular observance in the world, celebrated by more than a billion people every year. 

Native American people have long recognized and celebrated in story and song the interdependence of the earth and all its creatures. For the 20th anniversary of Earth Day in 1990, they were joined by more than 200 million people in 141 countries participating in celebrations of the planet that supports us. 

 The theme for this year’s Earth Day is cleaning up plastic pollution.  Our Association supports these clean- up efforts and the focus is cleaning up plastic from waterways and the ocean. The Perry Ridge Water Users Association believes  “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” and that is why the Perry Ridge Water Users Association has worked to protect the local streams and the Slocan River since 1983.  

 It is unfortunate that once areas are open to the public, pollution follow.  Opening up the headwater and alpine areas to use, including recreational use, puts clean water at risk to human waste, toxins as well as plastic. 

 There are many events locally celebrating Earth Day on Sunday, 22nd of April. We encourage people to support these events and our Directors have chosen not to hold an event to allow the other locally planned events good attendance. 

 If you are unable to attend these Earth Day events or were unable to attend our World Water Day celebration,  we invite you to spend some of your celebration visiting our website at: www.perryridge.org where our web master has made educational videos readily available at the link below. The categories include aboriginal water perspective, local water videos, and international perspective on the water crisis.
WORLD WATER DAY VIDEOS

 The Earth is unique in its life giving element of water, a gift that needs to be protected and cleaned up.  We have uploaded videos on water to help with education about our planet and invite the public to view our website as part of your Earth Day Celebration. 

 Submitted Marilyn Burgoon 

President 

PERRY RIDGE WATER USERS’ ASSOCIATION
4403 Slocan River Road,
Winlaw, B.C. VOG 2JO
Ph/Fax 1-250-226-7324 

www.perryridge.org 

December 12, 2017

Dear Members and Supporters: 

 Season’s Greetings

 The Association received a response to a letter we wrote to BC Timber Sales. The last paragraph states: Lastly, you asked to be advised of our plans for the remaining portions of Perry Ridge and reports done for these areas. At this time, BCTS does not have further plans on Perry Ridge for 5 – 7 years other than the active TSL being harvested currently. Barring an outbreak of a forest pest we will not proceed with development for at least 5 years.” Regarding our query about collection of precipitation data and about calculation of carbon sequestration information BCTS has stated they do not intend to do either. The Association requires this data collection prior to removal of any of the remaining forests. We will be searching funding for this data independently. The complete response can be viewed at www.perryridge.org 

 The current logging is on the back of the ridge.  The Association will work during the 5 – 7 year period to educate the government, in particular BCTS and the Ministry of Environment of the value of the remaining forests on Perry Ridge. These remaining forests provide protection to our homes from landslides, sequester carbon and help with climate change, provide visual beauty to Rails to Trails and the scenic route of Highway 6 and the Slocan River  The forests protect the creeks, seeps and springs, which provide us with some of the world’s finest water. 

Perry Ridge Water Users Association held the annual BC Rivers Day Celebration in September. At the event the keynote presenter was Mr. Frank Fowler, Instructor of Geology and Hydrology at Selkirk College for 10 years; currently retired,   M.S. in Geology from University of Minnesota.  The Upload of the presentation is now on You-Tube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iocw0nWRNcw&feature=youtu.be
Relationships Between Climate Change and Rivers  

 Perry Ridge Water Users Association also hosted a successful Christmas Faire for local artists and for community non-profit volunteers. Both BC Rivers Day and the Faire were funded by CBT Discretionary Funding and RDCK Area H Discretionary Funding. We will continue to host these annual events and produce you-tube uploads of the presentations at the BC Rivers Day. 

 Also of interest and supported by Perry Ridge Water Users are the two legal cases on Lemon Creek. The Criminal Case, violations under the Fisheries Act and Environmental Management Act, is before the courts and is scheduled for a week at the end of January for the closing arguments. All the witnesses have given their testimony for the prosecution, which included Dr. Ian Birtwell as the fisheries expert. He was an excellent witness with years of experience with Fisheries and Oceans.  Early in the trial the Judge gave a stay to Executive Flight (this did not apply to the BC Government nor the Driver and so that case is still being heard.  However the Federal Prosecution has filed an appeal of the stay for April 2018. The Civil Class Action case is also proceeding and was the first environmental class action suit recognized in BC. 

 An Anonymous author wrote: 

“Nothing in the world can take 

the place of persistence… 

Talent will not; nothing is more 

Common than unsuccessful 

Men with talent… 

Genius will not; unrewarded  

Genius is almost a proverb. 

Education will not; the world  

Is full of educated derelicts. 

Persistence and determination 

Alone are omnipotent. The 

Slogan ‘press on’ has solved,  

And always will solve, the 

Problems of the human race.”

 Perry Ridge Water Users Association Directors wish you a Safe and Happy Holiday. 

Marilyn Burgoon, President

Letters to Forestry

Forestry Letter p. 1
Forestry Letter p. 2

The judge erred in her decision.

It is clearer than that summer day in 2013, that the Judge in our case  against Executive Flight Center, the fuel company responsible for the 30,000 liters of jet fuel spilled into Lemon Creek summer of 2013, has erred in her decision!
Our AIM is that we will still see EFC  held accountable to the full extent of the LAW.  We are appealing to the People of the Slocan Valley whom suffered greatly in numbers, you know who you are. Many of us witnessed it first hand the impact the spill had on the our local Fish, Water and Wildlife. S0 we are calling upon the Kootenay people and any other folks following our story to lend their support by writing letters to the…
Chief Federal Prosecutor, Todd C. Gerhart.

Support us in our efforts to bring Justice for Lemon Creek
{see our sample letter below)
Letter to the Editor Mr. Gerhart

Thank You, Marilyn Burgoon

Thanksgiving Dinner and Legal Updates Passmore Hall just off Highway 6 on October 7th from 4:30 -7:30 pm.

Looking North up the Slocan towards the Narrows an Original Sinixt Settlement and fishing grounds.

 Smum Iem (Sinixt law) and Perry Ridge Water Users Association invite you to a Thanksgiving pot luck dinner and legal updates. 

 The potluck will be held at the Passmore Hall just off Highway 6 on October 7th from 4:30 -7:30 pm.  

 The update will include information on the Lemon Creek fuel spill court case and an update on the court case stemming from the arrest of Marilyn James, Sinixt Elder as well as the most recent arrest and charge of Lola Campbell, daughter of Bob Campbell, Sinixt Head Man in Vallican. 

 The Sinixt and the Perry Ridge Water Users Association are beginning a campaign to advocate legal rights equivialent to those enjoyed by humans for the Columbia River, starting with the Slocan River, an integral part of the headwaters of the Columbia down to the sea.   

This status has been granted to the Whanganui River  in New Zealand  which has long been revered by Maoris and has become the first in the world to receive legal rights equivalent to those enjoyed by humans. The high court of the northern state of Uttarakhand established two of India’s sacred rivers, the Ganges and Yamuna as “living entities. The new order makes polluting or damaging the rivers legally comparable to hurting a person.  Recently it is clear that the Slocan River requires this protection. 

Truth and Reconciliation is the work of every citizen. This update is for those in our community who wish to pursue these goals. Truth is about knowing and being informed. Reconciliation begins there. 

 To minimize clean up please bring your own eating utensils. Don’t worry if you don’t have food to bring there will be plenty of eats! Open to all. 

Thank You, Marilyn Burgoon, PRWUA

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             Thanks, Marilyn

JUSTICE FOR LEMON CREEK        (DOWN LOAD FORM PDF)

On September 10th 2017 at 7:00 at Slocan Park Perry Ridge Water Users Association invites you to a town hall meeting.

On May 3, 2017 the BC Supreme Court certified BC’s first environmental class action against the Province of BC. The action brought on behalf of more than 2500 BC residents, concerns the July 2013 spill of 35 000 litres of toxic jet fuel into Lemon Creek and the Slocan River water system. This environmental disaster, which occurred when a tanker truck overturned during a Province-led refueling operation, led to the emergency evacuation of thousands of residents in the Slocan Valley, causing millions of dollars of damage to both private property and the ecosystem.

David Rosenber, QC of Vancouver is troubled by the Province’s abrogation of its duties. “In this time of proposed pipelines and increased transportation of dangerous substances, we should all be concerned when the Province of British Columbia fails in its duty to protect the environment and refuses to take responsibility for its mistakes.”

Class counsel David Aaron will be in attendance to update the residents on the successful certification of the class action. Residents are invited to provide detailed information about the evacuation/dislocation costs that were incurred as a result of the Spill. Refreshments will be served. Join us for an informative evening about this class action and the pursuit of justice for the beautiful Slocan Valley. (See advertisement)