Editor:
Re: No point in complaining, March 22 letters.
On March 22, you published a letter by a Susan Martin. Several people contacted me about that letter, thinking I had written it, and I feel compelled to present another point of view about the beach and the trains.
There are beautiful beaches all over the world that are not ruined by trains rumbling past throughout the day and night. Our local beaches could easily be like them if the trains are rerouted.
The trains of today have increased in length, speed and the quantity of dangerous goods and chemicals being transported when compared to the early trains in this region. The geology of the region was not known and understood when the tracks were built. The trains that travel through White Rock and Crescent Beach today run along a beach with unstable slopes in a known earthquake region.
Anyone who walks at White Rock or goes to Crescent Beach regularly knows how trapped you are if the train is coming through. One can only imagine how disastrous this will be in any medical emergency or a catastrophic event such as an earthquake.
Rerouting the tracks would be a worthwhile investment in protecting both the slopes and present and future residents in these communities.
The beauty of any beach is its natural environment providing opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy the view, waves, sand, rocks, tidal pools, sunrises, sunsets and the diversity of living things in the air, water, under rocks and in the puddles. We are stewards of our beaches and must question when the environment, sustainability, access and enjoyment are severely threatened and limited by the increasing numbers of trains transporting dirty coal and other noxious materials through our community and beaches.
Rerouting the tracks would protect our beaches and assure a healthy future for their very existence.
When we stop questioning and complaining, we give up the stewardship of our environment and beaches and leave a lesser community to the next generations.
I am the other Susan Martin, who believes we should speak up and protect a beautiful part of the world so that future generations can also enjoy its wonder and beauty without the constant fear of personal or community disaster caused by one of the trains.
Susan I. Martin, Surrey