Dear editor:
This is a response to the letter that Mr. Mjolsness had published in the Eagle last week.
The story of Spray Lake Sawmills began over 70 years ago, built on the optimism and hard work of your father and uncle. The company has thrived and enjoyed success in Cochrane since those early days. Your legacy includes a recreational centre that bears your name. You have been a long-standing employer and an active participant in local affairs. In the town’s eyes, you are a model corporate citizen. This is a good legacy.
But if you drive west along the 1A, up the forestry trunk road and towards the mountains, you will sense a different, disturbing legacy. Vast, unbroken forests that stood for centuries are now fields of woody rubble. It will be many generations before people will see those forests again. Fragile slopes and sensitive wetlands have been churned up by your industrial tires and discarded like wrappers. Affected landowners and residents share stories of being ignored or marginalized. You have inflicted damage—both to the land and to the people.
Yet, it is not too late to alter this second legacy. There are hundreds of acres south of the Ghost River that you plan to cut this fall. If you choose, you can leave these trees standing.
The forest is not fence posts and mulch. It is a sponge that keeps water and slowly releases it to over a million people downstream. It is a lung that breathes in carbon dioxide and releases oxygen.
It is a home for rare plants and animals. It is a refuge from urban sidewalks and traffic. It is a heritage for your grandchildren and their children.
Every single tree will be your legacy, felled or spared. The story of Spray Lake Sawmills’ legacy is almost written. What will be the ending?
Sharlene Fritz, former Cochrane resident
