Editor:
This weekend I was at Piper Spit on Burnaby Lake. Despite the fact that there are signs saying no dogs, I was saddened to see many who ignored the signs and chased the birds and ducks.
Even after advising them not to, the response was, "So what, it's not like anyone will stop me."
Then, to my horror, at the western painted turtle nesting site, near the dam, a guy with a German shephard, with a leash, walked by and then his dog proceeded to attack the geese into the water, disturbing the delicate habitat. As there was nobody to stop this, I went after the dog to make sure it did not kill or injure any geese, or turtles. The owner laughed.
In both of these incidences, the owners stated that if their dogs were injured by the wildlife, as they attacked, they would have no problem killing the wildlife.
I would like to know why our parks are not protected, or at least monitored via camera, to stop these flagrant abuses of our parks and wildlife?
I have never seen any bylaw officers or RCMP or Burnaby SCPA at our parks. It's my understanding that the programs to police the parks have been cut back. It's no wonder the homeless and criminals use our parks for their purposes.
I was recently in Richmond and Surrey, and they had a presence there.
I was at a softball tournament at Riverway and was shocked at the use of drugs and alcohol in the open. Burnaby has no deterrents, and no enforcement, compared to other municipalities. Yet, we have the highest contingency fund from our taxes, and fees from developers.
Jeff Wittworth, Burnaby
