Letter - Cruise ship effects

By Howard Markson

Denise Savoie has announced her departure as our Member of Parliament, and I wish her luck in dealing with her health issues. However, I must comment on a statement she made in her last MP Report in the James Bay Beacon.

Ms. Savoie points out that she has written to the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority about the new North American Emissions Control area. It's admirable that there is an effort on the part of many, to lower emissions for cruise ships plying our waters. I applaud that. But Ms. Savoie goes on to say that the current cruise ship emissions, "are causing harm to many Victorians, particularly in the James Bay neighbourhood."

What? Causing harm to many Victorians? I wonder where our ex-MP is getting her information. Are there any studies that exist, that show hard data which link cruise ship emissions to harm to Victorians? I've never seen any, and I would be interested to read them if they exist. I'm not talking about anecdotal stories of someone saying they think their asthma, or allergies or whatever are worse when ships are in port. Where is the evidence to make a completely unfounded claim like this?

It's these type of unscientific claims that if repeated often enough, take on a life of their own. Yes, let's make ship emissions cleaner. But let's not make fanciful assertions that have no basis in fact.