The following letter launched a flurry of activity within the various federal and provincial government ministries. The letter marks a significant shift in Charles’ lobbying approach from his earlier work on the Pacific Playgrounds development on the Oyster River estuary. In this letter, the CC list is extensive as it reaches out to all local, provincial and federal ministries and governments, biologists a large number of groups associated with salmon fishing, environmental groups, elected officials as well as print, radio and TV media groups.
Another aspect of this letter that is useful to review in terms of lobbying approach is the scientific content which makes the case for addressing the environmental impact of the acid mine runoff. The letter quite clearly makes a concise and compelling case.
The phrase “The Tsolum River is dead!” was actually coined earlier by a local newspaper reporter Francis Bula in a Nov 7th, 1984 article.
The following responses from the various ministries point towards the effectiveness of raising the profile of the disparaged river through this initial letter.