UNB Woodlot supporters confront Board of Governors

Over the Thursday noon hour on April 14, 2011 dozens of professors, university students, high school students and concerned citizens rallied in front of the University of New Brunswick Board of Governors’ meeting at the Wu Conference Centre on the Fredericton UNB campus.

When the group attempted to enter the building of the conference, they were stopped by security and told that the building was rented for the day for a private function. The participants then marched through campus to Sir Howard Douglas Hall (the Old Arts Building) that houses UNB President Eddy Campbell’s office.

Mark D’Arcy, a member of the Friends of the UNB Woodlot, delivered a letter to the President’s office. The letter requested an explanation of what happened to the guaranteed 80 metre buffers for ecologically sensitive areas in the UNB Woodlot like Corbett Brook Marsh and Larch Swale.

The letter also requested the release of several documents including the UNB Board of Governors’ meeting minutes (which have not been made public since 2004), recommendations submitted by the UNB Properties Committee regarding the Woodlot Implementation Plan, the Woodlot Implementation Plan itself and survey results of rare animals and plants in the UNB Woodlot.

D’Arcy says, “Dr. Campbell states he is ‘committed to gradual, thoughtful and responsible management of these lands.’ For this statement to hold any credibility he should insist on transparency and accountability for UNB as a public institution.”

Tracy Glynn writes for the NB Media Co-op.