HAPPY NEW YEAR

Happy New Year everyone. Our Christmas blogging hiatus is now over. I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays. Some of you may even still be on holiday. The break is over for  Watchers of Langley Forests though. January is going to be a busy month. As you can read here Township Council has put off any decision about the sale of the Mclellan Forest East parcel(also known as the Gray Pit lands)  until January 21. We believe that we have a strong case for the conservation of this  ecologically valuable forest but Council has not yet made up their minds.

In the days to come we will have information on this site about how you can help including an important message about reaching out to the provincial government. Hint it involves writing letters.The general public's assistance in this matter is  not only greatly appreciated but it is also essential. This is not just a matter for the people of Langley Township but also the entire Lower Mainland Region and indeed the whole province. This forest is of regional ecological significance and it will not be saved without people from outside as well as inside Langley speaking up. As always when you do so it is important to be polite and courteous.

As you may know the Langley Advance named the campaign to save the forests in Glen Valley the News Story of 2012. In the spring and early summer we were just a small group of neighbours and concerned citizens.The name Watchers of Langley Forest had not even been thought of. We  would not have become newsmakers without the support of members of the  public beyond Glen Valley. I want to thank everyone for their support. Not only did it make us an impact on the media more importantly it made an impact at the political level.The point of getting media attention  in the end is to change public policy for the better. We are not done yet and I hope that the  that the work of WOLF and all of you on affecting public policy makes everyone realize that they can make a difference. Making your voice  heard on something that matters in your community is not a futile exercise. It can and does create change. Halfway there is no time to stop.

Just before Christmas Watchers of Langley Forests received official status as a registered society. You can become a member of WOLF by following the directions at this blog post. At the moment the process is limited to  snail mail but if we can figure out a way to do it electonically that is secure,efficient and economical we will do so.

I would like to remind everyone that you can follow us on twitter or  like us on facebook. You can subscribe to our newsletter by going here.

That all for now. There will be more to come soon.In the meantime here is a link that will take you some videos on youtube. You can also view this photo album.

-Kirk Robertson
Vice Chair
Watchers of Langley Forests