DEAR EDITOR:
I was concerned enough about the ad for an Island Community Planner in the July 15, 2021 Undercurrent, to search out the job description. My concern is that neither the ad nor the job description mentions that we are an island in the Islands Trust, guided by the provincial mandate of the Islands Trust Act “to preserve and protect.”
The first bullet says the planner will: “Identify and research issues related to the management of land use and the orderly development of Bowen Island.”
Whatever happened to the 2021 Island Plan and its priorities which include the following in its Mission Statement: “Preserves and enhances the unique mix of natural ecosystems and green spaces that Bowen Island possesses.”
And Priority B1 in the Plan: “Adopt a policy to embed Conservation Development Principles in municipal planning” “Begin work on an Ecosystem Protection Policy.” Steps to be taken include: a) Present and draft policy, engage the public and make recommendations to Council. b) Adopt policy.
I researched further and discovered that the Advisory Planning Commission, under Council’s instructions, drafted a Conservation Development (“CD”) Policy, dated October 2019. Almost two years have passed and the public has heard nothing about this promised policy. After a few emails, I discovered this CD policy is expected to come to Council in early 2022. I will watch for it, and will look for Ecosystem Protection Policy as well.
Every survey ever done on our island has emphasized the importance of the natural environment as a key factor in why people live here. I would hope that our new “island community planner” would be given notice of this and that the selection committee would be looking for someone who has the skills and/or experience to incorporate the importance of our natural environment in any tasks related to “orderly development.”
Nerys Poole
