To the Kayak community

We want to offer our sincere gratitude to everyone who has been sending their comments to Cam Forrester; however, this June 6th deadline is only our first hurdle. If you are coming to this site after that deadline, please forward your views and comments to our political leaders. We are putting a list together under Government Contacts in the Labels section to the right. Again, please Cc your emails to the Friends of Egmont.

We have received some incredible emails and, again, here is one of them:

Dear Cam,

I was very upset and distressed to hear about plans for large logging operations to take place around Egmont, specifically near Skookumchuck Rapids.

I am a kayaker from the UK and I was privileged enough to go to Skookumchuck a few years ago. I have travelled kayaking across the European Alps, Norway, New Zealand and much of BC. If anyone every asks me the most beautiful place that my sport has ever taken me I always answer without hesitation that it is Skookumchuck.

The whole area around there is just so pristine and beautiful, it really wrenches my heart to think of it being destroyed for a short term commercial gain. A large part of the magic of the area is the majestic moss covered forests that surround the area. These forests were like nothing else that I saw in BC for their beauty and majesty.

I appreciate that a large part of BC's economy is forestry. But I implore you that if you have to log in this area to do so in a sensitive and sustainable way as possible.

I am not sure if you are aware of the importance of Skookumchuck rapids to kayakers? They are world renowned for their beauty and quality of surfing. I would imagine that a large part of Egmont's tourist related income comes from kayakers from all over the world coming and staying at Egmont. And if the environment around here was spoilt I can only imagine that the local economy would be hard hit.

I hope that this email may go some way in helping to swaying your opinion or at least make you aware of the hurt that will be felt across the world if you decide to go ahead with the logging project.

Yours sincerely

Peter Harker

Liverpool

UK