Editor:
The following are two simple cases of risk management practiced daily within the District of Kent.
Case 1. It is well known that a very dangerous bacteria is carried by and spread by domestic dogs through their poop. This bacteria causes miscarriages if ingested by cows. Therefore, if domestic dogs should wander off the dikes into the fields and poop, there is a probability that when the cows in the field eat the grass, they could ingest the bacteria and suffer disastrous results. Because of this risk, domestic dogs must always be on a leash and all poop must be picked up when walking your dog on the dike.
Case 2. Sasquatch Park has a beautiful three-tier waterfall seen from the main road just short of the sani-dump station. A parking lot across the road was proposed to allow visitors ease of access to the falls. However, the idea was dropped due to the risk to people and infrastructure. There are active debris torrents located above the would-be-parking lot which have blocked the main road twice in the past few years.
In fact, the park suffered infrastructure damage in both debris torrent events. The water intake for the sani-dump station was obliterated both times. As the possibility of further events (debris torrents) is too great a new water source has been found which has reduced the risk of damage to infrastructure.
One would think that the Joint Emergency Program would learn from this case and find an alternate proposal for their evacuation route than this road, even more so, since these debris torrents are forecast to become more frequent.
John Coles
Agassiz