Blake C. Goldring is the executive chairman of AGF Management, vice-chair on the C.D. Howe Institute’s board of directors and the founder of Canada Company: Many Ways to Serve.

Our country’s largest airbase, CFB Trenton, has lead in its water.

This sprawling base, on the shores of Ontario’s Bay of Quinte between the communities of Brighton and Belleville, is home to 8 Wing, and the hub of Canadian Air Force air-mobility operations in Canada. The 4,500 steadfast men and women of the Royal Canadian Air Force posted there ensure our troops can be deployed wherever they are needed, fly humanitarian support across Canada and abroad in times of crisis, and conduct search-and-rescue missions in our vast North.

Yet the water fountain in the officers’ mess has yellow tape blocking its access, reminding everyone about the lead problem. Equally disturbing are the shambolic base accommodations, which house non-commissioned officers and junior ranks; they are called “spider shacks,” a reference to the creatures that infiltrate the cracks in the aged structures.

The world has changed, and Canada needs to change with it. War in Ukraine, the attacks on our sovereignty, changing political alliances – these compel us to act, not just........

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