sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½

Government has no health answers

The suggestions given by HealthLinkBC to access primary care when you don’t have a GP include walk-in clinics and Urgent and Primary Care Centres, and we are encouraged to not attend an emergency room except for emergencies.

My nine-year-old daughter has been sick with a fever and a deep, wheezing cough for a week. Concerned about a secondary lung infection, we called UPCCs at 8 a.m. Friday, and were told they were at capacity already, with one of them waitlisting us. We did not get a call back.

Medimap showed no walk-in clinics in Greater Victoria taking patients for the day. All were either at capacity, closed, or were outdated listings for long-shuttered practices.

Thankfully her condition improved, but the ER would likely be our only recourse if she had not.

The suggestions the government gives are nothing short of useless. Is nobody in office experiencing these problems of access themselves?

Have they all got their heads buried in the sand?

Leanne Parrott

Saanich

Here’s a recount of the air force’s history

The Friday front page mentioned the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force. How can this be?

I do understand that the Royal Canadian Air Force was established on April 1, 1924, however, when the Liberal government passed the “unification” bill on Feb. 1, 1968, the Royal Canadian Air Force, along with the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Army ceased to exist.

That would be a total of 44 years. Given, that on Aug. 16, 2011, the Conservative government restored the traditional designation of “Royal” to the Air Force, that would add 23 years, for a 67-year anniversary for this year.

To the Royal Canadian Air Force: Happy 67th anniversary.

Joe Hronek

Colwood

Invest in culture in the city centre

The proposal for a new hotel in Victoria with trees, and the recent news of ­establishing a park at Fisgard and Blanshard, will provide more green spaces and nature for all the people living in high rises downtown.

But what about culture?

What if Victoria invested in a detailed program of public art and street art?

Instead of us removing offensive pieces of sculpture, we could really focus on telling all our peoples’ stories which will make for a more vibrant streetscape, provide a reason to come downtown, and give visitors another attraction in our city.

While folks are enjoying the art pieces they will shop and support downtown businesses which will contribute to the city’s positive profile.

European cities of our size already do a good job of this.

With the negativity about downtown we can use a project of revitalization that sustains and nurtures our creative selves.

Janna Ginsberg Bleviss

Oak Bay

Go after fracking to preserve our water

Re: “sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hydro braces for severe drought that will trim power ­production,” Feb. 11.

Last year, sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hydro had to purchase one-fifth of our provincial consumption due to drought, and this story predicts an even drier year.

With an average fracking site using up to 500 Olympic swimming pools of fresh water, it is time to curtail the expansion of these sites and charge them more for the water that they use.

Jim Pine

Victoria

Follow the CRD lead on preparing for drought

I live in the Comox Valley and depend on the Comox Lake reservoir for my water supply. sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hydro manages the lake level, and takes an average of 84 per cent of the four-metre working inventory for power generation.

Fourteen per cent of the reservoir is devoted to protecting salmon, and about two per cent is for potable water supply to about 40,000 potable water customers.

Potable water customers have little impact on the reservoir inventory.

The Capital Regional District has invested in water storage and weathered last year’s drought with little concern.

Fortunately, sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hydro anticipated a drought year and reduced power generation from Comox Lake so there was water for fish and people.

It is a balance for all users, but sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hydro is responsible for inventory of water. The watershed provides much more water than can be used in the rainy season and it is “wasted” as it is spilled down the Puntledge River.

I spent part of the past two winters in Southern California. There are 120 golf courses in the Coachella Valley, in the desert. There are man-made lakes to store water, mostly pumped from the Colorado River.

There are no water restrictions. They prepared for drought, which is continuous.

Communities in sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ need to prepare for drought and invest in water storage. The CRD recognized this need two decades ago. They are the example to follow.

Phil Harrison

Comox Valley

Let’s move on from the Robinson firing

By my calculations, we have had more letters on Selina Robinson getting sacked than on the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

I am not surprised the NDP and Premier David Eby want to be all things to all people, yet another fools errand, but to have this soap opera steal the focus on something far more important is juvenile and sad.

Big picture, people!

Grant Maxwell

Nanaimo

When we need power, we will thank Alberta

Letters in sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ complain about Alberta’s gas-generated power plants. They are very clean and a coal plant is being converted to natural gas.

With the recent drought in sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ you could be looking for electricity in the near future and will surely have to get it from Alberta. We are glad to help.

Make sure you don’t crucify something you will need in the future. Also, the green energy wind turbines were down in the cold snap, not running as one letter said.

We have to help each province in future so we don’t risk lives no matter where power comes from.

Ken Alan

Fort McMurray, Alta.

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