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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ar ch 5, 20 20 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised family of newspapers is comprised f of more than 80 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeavfacebook.com/OakvilleBeavf @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Director of Production Mark Dills Regional Production Manager Manny Garcia Regional General Manager Steve Foreman Halton Media General Manager Vicki Dillane CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM EDITORIAL Hamilton/Burlington became part of a growing net- work of towns and cities drawn into the largest wave of civil unrest Canada has seen in years when a blockade was set up in late February. Indigenous protesters and their supporters blockaded the busy rail junction near Highway 6 and York Bou- levard near the border of Hamilton and Burlington not long after a Belleville blockade came down. Protesters were not only supporting the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs in B.C., they were also protesting the removal of that blockade. Similarly, protesters from the Six Nations area seized and closed the High- way 6 bypass near Caledo- nia. The group -- one of multiple popping up across the country in support of Wet'suwet'en land defend- ers protesting the planned Coastal GasLink pipeline on their traditional territo- ry -- camped out on the tracks between the Hamilton and Aldershot GO stations. They had tarps, ropes and campfires. The tracks were shut down, wreaking havoc for many travelers. The protesters were served with a court injunction to leave the property by CN Rail on Monday, Feb. 24, sever- al hours after the protest began. However, the group said they burned the injunction and remained on the tracks, with supporters bringing food and firewood throughout the next day. The group left around 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 25. Three people were later arrested. In the end, the situation was resolved peacefully. Yes, the blockades are illegal. People have a right to protest legally, but they don't have a right to take over public or private property or block public infrastruc- ture, like rail and transit services. But it's important to remember there is a process in place. First, the people or entity being blockaded need to request an injunction from a court. Once it is granted, responsibility for implementing the injunction moves to law enforcement authorities. When you are feeling impatient about blockades, it might help to remember that police need to follow their own processes and exercise their training and disci- pline. It's not simply a matter of donning riot gear and mov- ing in, nor should it be. We don't need a Wild West ap- proach; we need one that optimizes safety for everyone involved. REMAIN CALM AND LET POLICE DO THEIR JOB It's not simply a matter of donning riot gear and moving in, nor should it be. On Feb. 12, Halton re- gional council unanimous- ly endorsed a resolution calling on the federal gov- ernment to not approve CN's proposed truck-rail hub in Milton. Council has raised con- cerns about the potential impacts of CN's proposal for several years; initiating legal action in 2018 and re- cently presenting expert evidence at the federal re- view panel's public hearing in Milton. CN's truck-rail hub pro- posal is a 400-acre project that includes a new main- line rail, which would dou- ble the existing track line and add over 20 kilometres of new track. The facility would operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week and result in at least 1,600 truck trips to and from the facil- ity each day. The proposed location for the project is within one kilometre of approximate- ly 34,000 current and future residents, one hospital, 12 schools and two long-term care homes. The resolution is based on the federal review pan- el's assessment that the project is likely to cause significant adverse envi- ronmental effects on air quality and on human health, among other con- cerns. From the beginning, CN denied that its project would have any negative environmental impacts on Halton. It appears they were wrong. We have al- ways been clear that we be- lieve this project would have significant effects and the findings in the report validate our position. The federal cabinet will now review the report to determine if approval will be given for this project. A decision is expected by June. We need community support on this issue. I en- courage you to contact your MPs and MPPs to make your voice heard and join the conversation on so- cial media using the hash- tag #sayNO2CNhub. A Town Hall will be held by MP Adam van Koever- den, in partnership with Halton Region and the Town of Milton, on Satur- day, March 28 from 3 to 5 p.m. at Craig Kielburger Secondary School in Mil- ton. Everyone is invited to attend. For more information about CN's proposal and our position on this project, please visit halton.ca/cn. Gary Carr is Regional Chair of Halton Region. His column appears the first week of each month. To contact him, email gary.carr@halton.ca. CN HUB NOT WANTED HERE PROPOSED FACILITY COULD CAUSE SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS ON AIR QUALITY AND HUMAN HEALTH, WRITES GARY CARR GARY CARR Column