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Threat to stately herons at Kye Bay an outrage

Dear editor, In reply to Margaret Dawson's letter re the proposed tree topping in Kye Bay, a major heron rookery.

Dear editor,

In reply to Margaret Dawson's letter re the proposed tree topping in Kye Bay, a major heron rookery.

I didn't know about this, as I am sure many others did not, until I read Margaret's letter in the Comox Valley Record. Are there no others out there as outraged as I am? The Department of National Defence and Transport Canada need to know the destruction of the largest heron rookery on Vancouver Island will not be tolerated.

These stately birds, already teetering on the brink of becoming an endangered species, deserve our help. These trees are not in the flight path, and have not been considered a problem in the past.

The trees, on a mere 1.3 acres, are grandfathered under the Aeronautical Act and should not be touched. We owe this to these beautiful birds, who have a right to live peacefully in their natural habitat, unmolested by human intervention.

We also owe it to ourselves, our children and our grandchildren.

Whom amongst us could envision a walk on the beach, or in our estuaries, without the existence of our magnificent blue herons? The joy and delight in a child's eyes as they watch them patiently stalking dinner along the shoreline.

Stand up and voice your concerns now, before it's too late. We cannot allow this to become a reality. We will not only lose these beautiful birds – 85 heron nests in total – we will lose something of infinite value within ourselves.

B. Chappel

Courtenay