A job well done, Coun. Downey

OUR READERS WRITE

I just wanted to acknowledge the continued hard work by our Regional Councillor Johnana Downey for her achievement of finally getting us our first traffic light here in SouthFields Village. 

This may not sound like a big deal, but to us living here, it is.  I've been petitioning for these lights located at Kennedy Road and Abbotside Way in our Village for many years.  This is our most travelled in/out of the Village (we also have a northern in/out).  There are literally thousands of vehicles that pass through this intersection every day. 

With a population of over 12,000 residents in over 3,000 homes, we have our share of “big city” traffic issues.  

This intersection has seen many accident close calls and a fatality over the 10 years since the first homes opened in SouthFields Village and these lights are a very welcomed addition in order to slow down traffic to make it safer.  I will miss the lonely “flashing red light” over the stop sign that I had installed with Town's help during our first year of living here, but modern times have arrived.

Again, a big thank you to Councillor Downey and Town Staff for an excellent job!  

Ken Bokor, Caledon resident

Gas price decrease

Although the dramatic decrease in the need for oil and gas due to the COVID-19 pandemic is having a detrimental effect on the on the fossil fuel industry, it is having the opposite effect on the fight against climate change.

Throughout the past decade or so the fight for climate justice has been a battle between the economy and the environment, despite Trudeaus claim that he is balancing the environment and the economy. The federal government implementing the carbon tax was meant to reduce carbon pollution but in reality, it has not made a large enough reduction in carbon emissions to meet the levels outlined by the intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC).  

The global COVID-19 pandemic has caused a dramatic decrease in travel by cars, planes, boats, and anything that uses fossil fuels. An introduction of a global pandemic, although devastating to public health and the economy, has caused a reduction in carbon emissions and a much-needed boost in the fight for climate justice.

This pandemic has been nature's way of correcting the wrongs that mankind has been doing to this planet and we a suffering a great deal because of it. It is important to realize that we, as a population, can still get by even with this massive reduction in carbon emissions.  

Kevin Langford, Caledon  resident