radiofree.asia

Category: Press Release

  • MPs Pass First Major Update to Canada’s Most Important Environmental Law in More Than Two Decades

    ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE, BREAST CANCER ACTION QUEBEC, CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICIANS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, DAVID SUZUKI FOUNDATION, ECOJUSTICE

    Coalition of health and environment groups celebrate milestone and look to next steps

    OTTAWA/TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHNAABEG PEOPLE – Long-awaited amendments to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) passed a final vote in the House of Commons today. Passage of Bill S-5 marks a significant milestone towards better protecting people in Canada and the environment from pollution and toxic chemicals. We look forward to the new provisions entering into force and call for them to be implemented to the highest standards.

    Bill S-5 is the first major update to Canada’s cornerstone environmental law since Parliament last reformed the law in 1999.

    Passage of Bill S-5 represents important progress for the following reasons. 

    • It introduces long-overdue updates for the control of toxic substances and dangerous chemicals, including requiring that priority be given to prohibiting the most hazardous substances. The bill also updates the framework for assessing and managing toxic substances and improves transparency and accountability.
    • The right to a healthy environment will be recognized for the first time under federal law. The legislation establishes a new duty for the government to uphold the principles of environmental justice, intergenerational equity, and non-regression — ensuring environmental protections cannot be rolled back. It also requires the federal government to consider the cumulative impacts of toxics and their effects on vulnerable populations. 

    The government introduced the bill first in the Senate last year. The Senate and House committees studying the bill both approved some important strengthening amendments. Bill S-5 will now become law after the Senate reviews the House of Commons’ amendments. 

    While we welcome passage of the bill, we note that MPs rejected many amendments that would have further strengthened it. There is more to do to complete the process of CEPA modernization, including removing barriers to citizen lawsuits when there are violations of the Act, action on air quality, labelling of hazardous substances in consumer products, and strengthening control of genetically engineered animals.

    Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault has indicated that he intends to introduce a second CEPA modernization bill. It will need to address these outstanding recommendations for CEPA reform to complement Bill S-5. 

    Cassie Barker, Toxics Senior Program Manager, Environmental Defence, said:

    “After more than a decade of advocacy, Canada’s cornerstone toxics law will soon have new legal tools to better protect us from hazardous substances. However, further action is needed, and we are eager to see the government get to work on the next CEPA bill. We urge the government to deliver on its promise to require mandatory labelling of harmful ingredients, because we all deserve the right to know what toxics are in the products we use every day.”

    Dr. Elaine MacDonald, Healthy Communities Program Director, Ecojustice, said:

    “While not a comprehensive modernization of CEPA, Bill S-5 introduces long-overdue updates for the control of toxic substances and dangerous chemicals. It also recognizes the right to a healthy environment for the first time in federal law – a right that is integral to the full enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, including the right to life, health, food, water, and sanitation.”

    Jennifer Beeman, Executive Director, Breast Cancer Action Quebec, said:

    “Bill S-5 introduces some much-needed new requirements and tools, such as the watch list, to reign in the widespread use of toxic chemicals. However, the bill also pushes the framework for action on a number of key issues, notably the implementation of the right to a healthy environment, to development after the bill’s adoption. The government will need to move quickly to demonstrate that it is serious about tackling our urgent issues of environmental health injustices due to toxic pollution.”

    Dr. Melissa Lem, CAPE Board President and family physician said:

    “Whether it’s asthma, cancer or reproductive issues, health professionals manage patients suffering the negative health effects of polluted environments every day. This is why long-awaited reforms to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), and the passage of Bill S-5 today, are good news for environmental and human health, and environmental justice. Yet the government must take further action on toxics for the health of people in Canada—a next CEPA reform bill cannot come too soon.”

    Lisa Gue, National Policy Manager, David Suzuki Foundation, said:

    “Passage of Bill S-5 marks a major milestone for environmental rights in Canada, inscribing the right to a healthy environment in the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. Now the work begins to protect that right and uphold the principle of environmental justice.” 

    For more information see our media backgrounder on Bill S-5.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca, 705-435-8611

    Viorica Lorcencova, viorica.lorcencova@acsqc.ca, 514-443-8437 

    Reykia Fick, media@cape.ca, 647-762-9168 

    Brendan Glauser, bglauser@davidsuzuki.org, 604-356-8829  

    Sean O’Shea, Ecojustice, soshea@ecojustice.ca, 416-368-7533 ext. 523

    The post MPs Pass First Major Update to Canada’s Most Important Environmental Law in More Than Two Decades appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • New Mapping and Analysis Discredits the Ontario Government’s Excuses for Forcing Suburban Boundary Expansions and Removing Greenbelt, Floodplain and Wetland Protections

    Ontario could deliver the next 30 years of GTHA homes and workplaces while using just a portion of the 350 km2 of GTHA lands that were approved for development before 2022

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – New expert mapping and GIS analysis reveals that even prior to the provincial government’s recent push to force suburban boundary expansions, Ontario’s Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) had more than 350 km2 of previously designated, but unused, land for new suburban housing and business premises. This figure was determined by combining information from official documents from the province and the GTHA’s six regional municipalities with transposition of recent satellite photographs that document how much land has actually been built.

    This amount of land far exceeds the approximately 150km2 that will actually be required to build “greenfield homes” (i.e., homes outside of existing neighbourhoods and built up areas) over the next 30 years. This shows that the Ontario government’s recent decision to force suburban regional and city governments to expand their boundaries even further outwards has created a massive land oversupply – a total of roughly 590 km2 – at the expense of farms, forests and wetlands.

    The total inventory of “greenfield” land supply in the GTHA conclusively discredits the Ontario government’s argument for stripping protection from key areas of the Greenbelt and raises renewed questions about what is actually motivating the onslaught of measures that have marked large areas of previously-protected farmland and natural areas for destruction.

    “Whatever the present Ontario government’s real reasons may be for stripping protection from the crown jewels of the Greenbelt and trying to push sprawl onto wetlands, floodplains and even more prime farmland, this mapping analysis shows that increasing housing supply and affordability is not the motive,” said Phil Pothen, Ontario Environment Program Manager.

    Environmental Defence’s analysis also demonstrates how much less land could be used with even modest efforts to create livable, transit-oriented communities instead of encouraging car-dependent sprawl. While the Ontario government’s own targets for population growth outside of existing built up areas up to 2051 would see roughly 1.5 million residents (of a total 3.0 million projected new suburban GTHA residents) pushed into new “greenfield” subdivisions, simply developing the pre-2022 supply of designated land at the same, modest densities as the former City of Toronto would house more than 2.5 million people, even if land for workplaces is factored in and natural areas, such as woodlots, ravines and wetlands, are kept off limits.

    This new mapping and analysis adds value to earlier reports created by the regions’ professional planning staff, which evaluated land supply based solely on tabulations of lands that were already approved for development.

    “Beyond the GTHA land supply figures, which are staggering, our analyses reveal how many people the land designated for development could house if it was developed responsibly. As long as we build homes in a way that supports public transit, walkability, and access to services, the GTHA would consume less land than had already been set aside for growth before any urban boundary expansions were imposed by the province,” said Pothen.

    See the map and find out more here.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Brittany Harris, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post New Mapping and Analysis Discredits the Ontario Government’s Excuses for Forcing Suburban Boundary Expansions and Removing Greenbelt, Floodplain and Wetland Protections appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Alberta’s Superior Court Rejects Former Premier Kenney’s Arguments To Avoid Defamation Lawsuit Brought Forward By Five Environmental Groups

    ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE. WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW, DOGWOOD INITIATIVE, STAND.EARTH, WILDERNESS COMMITTEE

    Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa — Alberta’s superior court today dismissed attempts by former Premier Jason Kenney and the Alberta government to throw out a defamation lawsuit brought forward by five environmental groups. Environmental Defence, West Coast Environmental Law, Dogwood Initiative, Stand.earth and the Wilderness Committee are suing former Premier Jason Kenney and the Alberta government for lying about the findings of his Public Inquiry into Anti-Alberta Energy Campaigns. Over two years, groups and individuals were named publicly and targeted on social media, causing some individuals to receive death threats.

    “Truth matters in a democracy, and today’s court decision makes clear that the former Alberta Premier specifically targeted environmental organizations to undermine our efforts to communicate the risks of climate change, and the role an expanding oil industry plays in threatening the future of Canadians,” said Tim Gray, Executive Director, Environmental Defence.

    Former Alberta Premier Kenney tried to argue that he wasn’t referring to the groups specifically, but the court rejected that argument, writing, “Considering the Key Findings Document as a whole, the publication leads any reasonable person to understand that the alleged defamatory statements refer to campaigns of which the Plaintiffs who appear on the list of participants were part.”

    “Anyone who looks at the report or Kenney’s other public statements would know he was referring to our clients,” said Paul Champ, the lawyer for the five defamed groups. “The Court agreed, ruling that Mr. Kenney was trying to escape liability by hiding behind technical arguments that were unrealistic and baseless. Albertans are smarter than that.”

    Groups contended that statements in the Alberta government’s “Key Findings” document, which were subsequently repeated and amplified by Premier Kenney on social media platforms, were defamatory as they claimed the Inquiry concluded that the environmental groups had deliberately spread “misinformation” about the Alberta oil and gas industry. In his final report of the Public Inquiry into Anti-Alberta Energy Campaigns, Commissioner Steve Allan was unequivocal in his report that he made no such finding, noting environmental groups did nothing wrong, but simply care about climate change.

    “Jason Kenney wasted millions of taxpayer dollars on a personal vendetta that backfired. Albertans are still paying for his lawyers as he tries to dodge responsibility for what he said. The sooner he apologizes and retracts his defamatory statements, the sooner we can all move on from this sorry chapter,” said Kai Nagata, Communication Director of Dogwood BC.

    The defamed groups have asked Kenney and the Alberta government to retract their statements and issue public apologies. To date, former Premier Kenney and Danielle Smith’s government have refused.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    Paul Champ, Human Rights Lawyer, (613) 816-2441

    Jessica Clogg, Executive Director, West Coast Environmental Law, (604) 601-2508

    Sven Biggs, Stand.earth, Canadian Oil and Gas Programs Director, (778) 882-8354

    Peter McCartney, Climate Campaigner, Wilderness Committee (778) 239-1935

    Kai Nagata, Communications Director, Dogwood BC, (778) 829-6493

    The post Alberta’s Superior Court Rejects Former Premier Kenney’s Arguments To Avoid Defamation Lawsuit Brought Forward By Five Environmental Groups appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Progress on Regulating PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Applauded by Environmental Health Advocates and Firefighters

    ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE, ECOJUSTICE

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Today, the federal government released its draft State of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) Report, signalling its intention to pursue a comprehensive regulatory approach to these “forever chemicals.” The proposal to regulate PFAS as a class of chemicals allows the government to more effectively address the human health and environmental harms associated with these thousands of chemicals in products.

    Canada’s risk management of PFAS currently lags behind other jurisdictions, and its regulatory scope will need to be extended to include the many products that contribute to PFAS exposures and environmental contamination in order to be on par with the E.U. — a leader in toxics policy.

    This report confirms that PFAS are associated with environmental and human health harms, and is an important step in the process of addressing PFAS chemicals as a class under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA).

    Cassie Barker, Toxics Senior Program Manager, Environmental Defence, said: 

    “We applaud the federal government for moving forward with its proposed action on ‘forever chemicals’. This is the first time Canada has regulated a hazardous class of chemicals and is in line with the upcoming reforms to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. It’s time to end an era of whack-a-mole toxics policy where one toxic chemical is simply replaced by another. Today’s proposal is a bold step in the right direction.”

    Lucy Grey, Inuk mother and public health research advisor for the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services, said: 

    “Accessing safe and uncontaminated country food is a matter of Inuit rights. Wildlife health is directly connected to Inuit health and well-being and it is essential to preserve resources for the next generations.”

    Amira Aker, Postdoctoral Fellow and Melanie Lemire, Associate Professor at the Universite Laval and CHU de Quebec, said: 

    “We especially welcome Canada’s conclusions surrounding consideration of highly exposed populations, the importance of regulating PFAS as a class rather than wasting time regulating them individually, and highlighting the importance of cumulative effects of PFAS mixtures on health.”

    Dr. Elaine MacDonald, Healthy Communities Director, Ecojustice, said: 

    “Strong action to prohibit and control PFAS will be essential to addressing the harm of these substances on us all, and particularly for Indigenous and other communities dealing with impacts from PFAS in their soil, drinking water and food.”

    Quincy Emmons, firefighter and FireRein (PFAS-free firefighting product) developer, said: 

    “Regulation of PFAS as a class is a bold step to mitigating this issue, as it is impossible to fully characterize the many thousands of precursors and terminal products individually.  The burden of proof should be on the manufacturers to show that a specific chemistry is safe, not on society to show that it is dangerous.”

    Richard Banting, Fire Chief, Tilden Lake Volunteer Fire Department, said: 

    “This is an important step to dealing with PFAS as a class, and we look forward to the government supporting firefighters to get these foams out of our fire halls, and also get PFAS out of our gear and other products we all use every day.”

    Additional information: 

    • The government signalled in 2021 that it would be proposing a class-based approach to PFAS regulation in Canada.
    • PFAS are a group of thousands of chemicals that are linked with adverse human and environmental health effects.
    • PFAS has been used to make waterproof, non-stick, stain-resistant, and grease-repellent products for decades, including clothing and other textiles, plastics, cosmetics, cookware, takeout, and food contact materials.
    • Canadians and stakeholders are invited to comment on the draft report and risk management scope and provide information that would help inform the development of the final report, until July 19.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    ABOUT ECOJUSTICE (ecojustice.ca): Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions, law, and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Halifax.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    Dr. Elaine MacDonald, Ecojustice, emacdonald@ecojustice.ca

    The post Progress on Regulating PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Applauded by Environmental Health Advocates and Firefighters appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement on proposed new U.S. pollution standards for cars and trucks, which Canada is expected to adopt

    Statement from Keith Brooks, Programs Director, Environmental Defence

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – We applaud the Biden-Harris administration’s move to accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles with ambitious action on tightening vehicle emissions standards. These emissions standards will have a massive impact in the U.S., and will also help smooth Canada’s transition to 100 per cent electric cars by sending a strong signal to the North American automotive market.

    This move from the U.S., which is expected to be adopted in Canada “by reference”, compliments Canada’s even more ambitious zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) sales targets, which provides a pathway to 100 per cent zero emission vehicle sales by 2035. This is the better regulatory tool in the Canadian context, and ensures that Canada can meet its greenhouse gas reduction targets regardless of who is elected to the White House.

    The Canadian government must now ensure that both regulations (the ZEV sales targets and vehicle emissions standards) work in harmony, such as was recently proposed in the UK, to avoid negative interactions such as double crediting.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement on proposed new U.S. pollution standards for cars and trucks, which Canada is expected to adopt appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Ontario to kill Growth Plan: Proposed new planning rules would kneecap housing supply efforts and unleash unprecedented sprawl on Ontario’s forests, farmland and wetlands

    Planned changes further exacerbate Ontario’s housing crisis

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Despite mounting concern that its approach to land use planning is impeding attempts to tackle the housing affordability crisis, Ontario’s government is doubling down on the sprawl-centric policies that have led to a housing shortage and pushed home and rental prices out of reach for new households.

    This afternoon, Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Steve Clark, revealed plans to entirely eliminate the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe. This plan was designed to ensure efficient use of southern Ontario’s very finite land supply and limited construction capacity. The proposal would also weaken other key land-efficiency and construction-efficiency measures in the Provincial Policy Statement that presently govern development across the province.

    Rather than cracking down on the low-density land use plans that are seeing the region’s scarce labor, materials and serviced land squandered on oversized, infrastructure-intensive sprawl, this move appears calculated to lower the number of homes created for each unit of labour and serviced land invested. For example, it appears the government is proposing to:

    • Eliminate the mandate that at least 50 residents be housed on each hectare of farmland and wildlife habitat sacrificed for residential development. This comes after the government had already reduced the number of homes required from a previous 80 residents per hectare standard.

    • Eliminate the requirement that regions like Peel, York, Halton and Waterloo, where housing shortages – and constraints on construction capacity – are most acute, make use of their existing infrastructure and serviced land by upzoning them to accommodate at least 50% of their planned new households. Ontario had already reduced the mandate from 60%, but it would now be removed entirely.

    • Eliminate the Provincial Policy Statement requirement that municipalities seize all opportunities for efficient infill development, and improve the efficiency of existing development plans, before resorting to more labour and resource-intensive expansions of urban boundaries into farms and forests.

    • Allow land speculators to push through inefficent, on-demand piecemeal boundary expansions rather than requiring that they be coordinated as part of periodic reviews.

    These changes would further exacerbate the inefficiencies created by the elimination of meaningful regionally-coordinated land use and infrastructure planning through last October’s Bill 23.

    “Ontarians know that this government has been choosing to squander what remains of Ontario’s quality farmland and rare southern forests and wetlands to enrich well-connected land speculators. Today’s announcement makes it clearer than ever that Ontario is also willing to sacrifice progress on ending the housing shortage and affordability crisis. We know that unless we use land, labour and equipment MUCH more efficiently, and focus home building in existing neighborhoods, we will not have the capacity to deliver the 1.5 million homes we need in the next decade,” said Phil Pothen, Ontario Environment Program Manager, Environmental Defence.

    The good news is that there is still time to demand a course reversal on this misguided scheme. Unlike recent attacks on the Greenbelt, wetlands and conservation authorities, which were rushed through the legislature at very short notice, the government says it will be accepting comments on this planned dismantling of land efficiency measures until June 5th of this year.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Brittany Harris, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Ontario to kill Growth Plan: Proposed new planning rules would kneecap housing supply efforts and unleash unprecedented sprawl on Ontario’s forests, farmland and wetlands appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Tribal and First Nations rebuke Canada’s support of Line 5 pipeline to U.N. Human Rights Council

    Pipeline poses direct threats to the human rights of frontline Indigenous communities and the environment

    OTTAWA | TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHNAABEG PEOPLE – Representatives of fifty-one Tribal and First Nations located in what is now the United States and Canada submitted a report to the United Nations Human Rights Council calling on the Government of Canada to stop violating the human rights of Indigenous peoples through its support for Enbridge’s Line 5 crude oil pipeline. First constructed in 1953, Line 5 runs between Wisconsin and Ontario, traversing major waterways posing direct threats to Tribal Nations, communities, and ecosystems along its path.

    The groups submitted the report for consideration under Canada’s upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR). As a U.N. member state, Canada’s human rights record is periodically scrutinized by U.N. member States through the UPR at the Human Rights Council. Canada will be reviewed during the 44th session of the UPR Working Group, which will take place from November 6 through 17 this year, and it will be Canada’s fourth review.

    Line 5, which trespasses on traditional Anishinaabe territories in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ontario, faces lawsuits from Tribal Nations and the State of Michigan. Rather than respect and defend the rights of Indigenous peoples, Canada’s government has shielded Enbridge from being shut down, invoking the 1977 Transit Pipeline Treaty with the U.S. and making legal submissions in U.S. courts to keep the pipeline operating.

    The communities and their council offered the following statements: 

    “The rights of Indigenous people, of my people, are rights that should be respected by all sovereigns both domestic and abroad,” said President Whitney Gravelle of the Bay Mills Indian Community. “Canada’s support of Line 5 is a disaster in the making for the entire Great Lakes region because an oil spill will poison our fish, harm our sacred sites, contaminate our drinking water – and ultimately destroy our Indigenous way of life.”

    “The Straits of Mackinac are central to the Anishinaabe creation story, which makes this location sacred from both a cultural and historical perspective in the formation of the Anishinaabe people,” said Chairperson Austin Lowes of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. “Protecting the Straits is also a matter of the utmost environmental and economic importance – both to our people and the state of Michigan.”

    “The Bad River Band is saddened by the fact that Canada’s actions have required us to raise our complaints with the United Nations, but Canada has left the Tribes with no choice,” said Chairman Michael Wiggins Jr. of the Bad River Band. “Canada has deliberately interfered in our efforts to protect our homeland. It has sought to block us from evicting a company that has trespassed on our lands for a decade and whose actions pose an existential threat to the Bad River watershed and our very way of life. It has likewise interfered with the efforts of Bay Mills and our other sister tribes in Michigan to protect their sacred waterways and fisheries. Canada’s prioritization of the profits of its oil and gas companies over the rights of indigenous peoples on both sides of the border demands the attention of all people of good faith.”

    “The Anishinabek Nation supports the shutdown of Line 5,” said Reg Niganobe, Grand Council Chief of the Anishinabek Nation. “Our communities have collectively stood in solidarity with our relations along the pipeline to protect the land and water against the potential for catastrophic environmental damage. For centuries, peoples of our nations have been caring for the Great Lakes; we are reliant on the waters for our way of life. We will be relieved when this line is effectively decommissioned, and we express gratitude to our relatives who have been leading this critical fight for years.”

    “Canada’s international human rights obligations are clear,” said EarthRights General Counsel Marco Simons. “The State must respect and actively protect Indigenous peoples’ lands and way of life, including by regulating the activities of the corporations under its jurisdiction that pose threats to Indigenous rights. Not only has Canada failed in this obligation by refusing to decommission the degrading Line 5 or even consult with the affected Indigenous populations, but it is actively intervening legally and diplomatically to ensure that Enbridge can operate Line 5 for decades to come. Indigenous communities deserve better.”

    “Line 5 poses an unacceptable risk to the treaty-protected natural and cultural resources of Indigenous Peoples around the Great Lakes,” added Elizabeth Goldstein, Emma Schwartz, and Jack Schnettler, student attorneys in the Georgetown Environmental Law and Justice Clinic. “By supporting fossil fuel projects like Line 5, Canada is exacerbating climate change and perpetuating environmental injustices. The Clinic was thrilled to work with the Bay Mills Indian Community to expose these injustices and support frontline communities that experience devastating impacts of climate change while being excluded from decision-making affecting their lands and very way of life.”

    “Canada’s efforts to extend the operation of the Line 5 oil pipeline–over the objections and against the rights of Tribal and First Nations–flies in the face of its legal obligations,” said Tamara Morgenthau, Senior Attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law. “Rather than comply with its duty to respect and protect human rights and the environment from the destructive impacts of fossil fuels and the climate change they cause, Canada has instead sought to protect Enbridge’s Line 5 oil pipeline. Doing so only locks in further dependence on fossil fuels and further harm to people and the planet. Canada should reverse course.”

    “The ongoing operation of Enbridge’s leaky Line 5 in the Great Lakes basin is an ecological disaster in the making,” said Michelle Woodhouse, Water Program Manager for Environmental Defence Canada. “It is also a clear violation of the inherent and treaty rights of the Anishinaabeg Nations of the Great Lakes. The Government of Canada must uphold Indigenous rights as required by law under An Act Respecting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This includes withdrawing its use of the 1977 pipeline treaty, working with U.S. governments and the Anishinaabeg Nations of the Great Lakes to shut down Line 5, and implementing existing readily available alternatives to meet our energy needs.”

    The communities urge the Government of Canada to: 

    • Withdraw its invocation of the Pipeline Treaty and its positions in U.S. litigation opposing decommissioning Line 5.
    • Ensure that affected Indigenous Nations, who are sovereigns and human rights holders, are invited to participate in discussions regarding Line 5’s future, including any negotiations under the Pipeline Treaty, so long as they continue.
    • Interpret all international treaties, including the Pipeline Treaty, consistently with Canada’s human rights obligations.
    • Ensure affected Indigenous Peoples’ Free, Prior, Informed Consent (FPIC) before providing support for extractive sector projects and withdraw support from projects that do not have affected Indigenous Peoples’ FPIC.
    • Ensure that corporations under Canadian jurisdiction do not cause or contribute to foreseeable threats to human rights.

    The report was submitted by the Anishinabek Nation, Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Bay Mills Indian Community, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians, Hannahville Indian Community, Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians of Michigan, Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, together with the Center for International Environmental Law, EarthRights International, Environmental Defence Canada, and the Georgetown University Law Center Environmental Law and Justice Clinic.

    View the submission here.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Tribal and First Nations rebuke Canada’s support of Line 5 pipeline to U.N. Human Rights Council appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement on the federal government’s role in ensuring a proper review of the proposed Highway 413

    Statement from Tim Gray, Executive Director, Environmental Defence

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Yesterday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney criticized the federal government’s Impact Assessment Act review of the proposed Highway 413. This expensive and unnecessary mega-highway would parallel the underused Highway 407 and threaten a multitude of values. Review of its impacts and a decision on whether or not to permit its construction is fully within federal responsibility.

    “The Ontario government is running roughshod over Ontario’s environmental and planning rules. These attacks are creating massive economic and environmental liabilities that residents will have to bear for decades to come. The federal government has a responsibility to ensure nation-wide laws are followed to protect Ontario’s future. It must act to stop projects like Highway 413 that threaten our wallets, communities and future,” said Tim Gray.

    Background Information

    There are multiple ways that building Highway 413 would threaten people in Ontario and infringe on areas of federal government responsibility.

    • Highway 413 would cause over 17 million tonnes of additional CO2 emissions by 2050 – the same date by which Canada is committed to reach net-zero emissions.
    • The highway would enable and encourage expensive sprawl and make impossible the development of Brampton’s Heritage Heights, a transit-oriented, more affordable community.
    • Highway 413 would pave over 400 acres of the Greenbelt, and over 2,000 acres of Class 1 and Class 2 farmland – Ontario’s most productive farmland.
    • Highway 413 would cross over 85 rivers and streams, require a massive bridge over the Humber River and would pollute and destroy fish habitat.
    • The highway would cause real and unavoidable harm to a range of at-risk and endangered species by destroying their rare habitats.
    • Highway 413 would save drivers less than 1 minute on average across the region, and definitely not the 30 minutes that the Ontario government is claiming.
    • Highway 413 would be built only 15 km north of the underused Highway 407, which is owned by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
    • The highway would cost taxpayers billions. Although the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) has failed to release updated cost estimates, in 2018, the cost of building the highway was estimated to be over $6 billion dollars.
    • Highway 413 could destroy important archaeological sites as the project passes through land that has long been inhabited by the Huron-Wendat. The highway would also bisect the sensitive headwaters of four watersheds within Mississauga of the Credit First Nation’s territory and impact their physical and cultural heritage, including ceremonial sites, burial sites and the cultural landscape.

    Additional Resources

    http://stopthe413.ca/

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Highway413TheRoadToOurRuin_EnvironmentalDefenceNov.pdf

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Highway-413-Paving-Paradise-Report_Environmental-Defence.pdf

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Brittany Harris, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement on the federal government’s role in ensuring a proper review of the proposed Highway 413 appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement on the federal government’s response to RNNR committee recommendations on the proposed cap on oil and gas emissions

    Statement by Aly Hyder Ali, Oil and Gas Program Manager, Environmental Defence

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – We are pleased to see the Government of Canada agree with the recommendation put forward by the Standing Committee of Natural Resources (RNNR) that the proposed cap on emissions from the oil and gas industry must align with the goals of limiting global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees, as identified in the Paris Agreement.

    However, for the oil and gas emissions cap to align with Canada’s climate commitments, it needs to reflect the economy-wide target of reducing emissions from the oil and gas industry by 40-45 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030.

    Anything less than that would result in other industries and communities having to bear the burden of additional emissions reductions, while the oil and gas companies are let off the hook.

    Of course, for Canada to truly do its part to align with a 1.5 pathway, it would require a phase down of oil and gas production over the next decade.

    We are also pleased that the federal government has supported other recommendations put forward by RNNR, which includes considering the impacts of the cap on the workforce and Indigenous communities, and the impacts of the oil and gas sector on the environment.

    However, it is concerning that Canada continues to place big bets on supporting unproven and expensive speculative technologies like carbon capture and storage to reduce emissions.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement on the federal government’s response to RNNR committee recommendations on the proposed cap on oil and gas emissions appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Peter L. Markowitz, Professor of Law at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Joins the Innocence Project Board of Directors

    (March 31, 2023 — New York, NY) The Innocence Project announced today that Peter L. Markowitz, professor and Associate Dean of Equity in Curriculum and Teaching at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, has been elected to its Board of Directors.

    As the founder and co-director of the Kathryn O. Greenberg Immigration Justice Clinic, Professor Markowitz is an expert on the intersection of criminal and immigration law, which is the clinic’s prime focus, in addition to immigration enforcement issues. The clinic provides defense representation to individuals threatened with deportation and represents community-based and national advocacy organizations on various projects. Professor Markowitz and the clinic have played a central role in many critical innovations in the field of immigration law, including: creating the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project, the nation’s first public defender system for detained immigrants; developing the concept of sanctuary laws to protect undocumented immigrants; developing the first national immigration fellowship program, otherwise known as the Immigrant Justice Corps; and initiating the nation’s first full-service in-house immigration unit located in a public defender’s office at The Bronx Defenders. 

    “It is an honor to join the Innocence Project team, which has been a transformative force in the American legal system. They have not just exonerated scores of wrongly convicted people, but, in doing so, they have exposed some of the core defects and injustices that infect the criminal legal system and harm all those it ensnares. I look forward to learning from the staff and clients and supporting them in any way I can,” said Professor Markowitz.     

    “Peter Markowitz is a trailblazer in immigration law, with invaluable expertise in its intersectionality with the many challenges of the criminal legal system,” said Christina Swarns, executive director of the Innocence Project. “His commitment to justice and his leadership in this field are critical to our work and reflect the shared experiences of many of our clients. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Innocence Project.”

    Under Professor Markowitz’s guidance, the Greenberg Immigration Justice Clinic has been honored with numerous awards, including the Daniel Levy Award for outstanding and innovative advocacy. It has also been recognized by the New York City Council for groundbreaking work on behalf of immigrant communities.

    “It is a privilege to have Peter Markowitz join the Innocence Project Board of Directors,” said Innocence Project Board Chair Jack Taylor. “Professor Markowitz has committed decades to leading innovations in immigration law, establishing a groundbreaking clinic, as well as creating integral programs in the court system to ensure equitable and just pathways for all. This is a central part of the Innocence Project’s mission, and his experience at the forefront of this field, as well as a public defender, make him a vital asset to our work.”

    Professor Markowitz’s work has been published widely in leading law journals and in the press, with op-eds appearing in The New York Times, The Nation, Huffington Post, and more. Prior to his role at Cardozo, Professor Markowitz taught at both New York University and Hofstra Schools of Law. He received his J.D. from New York University School of Law in 2001. Following graduation, Professor Markowitz clerked for the Honorable Frederic Block — the U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of New York —  and was a Soros Justice Fellow at The Bronx Defenders before entering the field of academia.

    The post Peter L. Markowitz, Professor of Law at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Joins the Innocence Project Board of Directors appeared first on Innocence Project.

    This post was originally published on Innocence Project.

  • MPs pass long-awaited legislation to tackle environmental racism in Canada

    Advocates celebrate milestone, call on Senate to prioritize Bill C-226

    OTTAWA | TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHNAABEG PEOPLE – Advocates for social justice and equity, environmental protection and public health celebrate passage of Bill C-226, the National Strategy on Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act, in the House of Commons.

    The bill now moves to the Senate. If approved by both chambers of parliament, Bill C-226 will become law, and require the government to examine the links between racialization, socio-economic status and environmental risk, and develop Canada’s first national strategy on environmental racism and environmental justice.

    Advocates say this is long overdue. A 2020 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Toxic Wastes and Human Rights pointed to “a pattern in Canada where marginalized groups, and Indigenous peoples in particular, find themselves on the wrong side of a toxic divide, subject to conditions that would not be acceptable elsewhere in Canada.”

    The United States established a program on environmental justice nearly three decades ago, with an executive order issued in 1994. Canada lacks any parallel requirements.

    Dr. Ingrid Waldron, Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Canadian Coalition for Environmental and Climate Justice (CCECJ), said, “We know the stories about where and how environmental racism exists in Canada. The formal data on these realities is incomplete and therefore there is a lack of understanding about how real this problem is.

    Bill C-226 will be a starting point for data to be collected and acted upon. The consequences of inaction on environmental racism would be ongoing negative impacts on people’s health and well-being. The strategy created with Bill C-226 means action to redress environmental racism and action for environmental justice for all.”

    The strategy must reflect the needs of the communities and peoples most knowledgeable about the impacts of environmental racism and injustice, whose expertise will contribute to a meaningful framework to prevent further injustice and ill health, say advocates.

    Bill C-226 was first introduced by former MP Lenore Zann as Bill C-230 in the last session of Parliament. It was approved by the House of Commons environment committee in June 2021 but then died on the order paper when Parliament dissolved for elections. On February 2, 2022, MP Elizabeth May re-introduced the same legislation as Bill C-226. Government and NDP MPs supported the bill, ensuring its passage in the House of Commons.

    The Canadian Coalition for Environment & Climate Justice (CCECJ), supported by a number of civil society groups, now urges the Senate to make time for consideration of Bill C-226 at the earliest opportunity. It is our hope that this bill will become law before the summer so that the important work of developing a national strategy on environmental racism and environmental justice can begin.

    Groups supporting this statement:

    • Canadian Coalition for Environmental and Climate Justice (CCECJ)
    • Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequalities and Community Health Project (The ENRICH Project)
    • Black Environmental Initiative
    • Breast Cancer Action Québec (BCAQ)
    • Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE)
    • Canadian Environmental Law Association
    • Canadian Federation of Medical Students Health and Environment Adaptive Response Task Force (CFMS HEART)
    • Climate Strike Canada
    • Coalition for Environmental Rights
    • David Suzuki Foundation
    • Ecojustice
    • Environmental Defence
    • For Our Kids
    • KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives
    • McGill Nurses for Planetary Health
    • Nova Scotia Voice of Women for Peace
    • Prevent Cancer Now
    • Shake Up The Establishment
    • Sierra Club Canada Foundation
    • South End Environmental Injustice Society (SEED)
    • West Coast Environmental Law
    • Women’s Healthy Environments Network (WHEN)

    Background information:

    • Text of Bill C-226
    • Environmental racism refers to the disproportionate siting of polluting industries and other environmental hazards in Indigenous, Black, and other racialized communities, and uneven access to nature and environmental benefits.
    • The US EPA defines environmental justice as, “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. This goal will be achieved when everyone enjoys: The same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards, and Equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.”
    • More information about environmental racism is available on the The ENRICH Project website.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post MPs pass long-awaited legislation to tackle environmental racism in Canada appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Private Members Bill C-234 weakens carbon pricing and should not become law

    Statement from Tim Gray, Executive Director, Environmental Defence

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Yesterday, a majority of opposition parties’ federal MPs voted for the 3rd reading passage of Private Members Bill C-234 entitled “An Act to Amend the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act”. This bill, if left unamended by the Senate, would weaken the carbon price by expanding the definition of eligible farming machinery and extending the exemption from carbon pricing for qualifying farming fuel to include marketable natural gas and propane.

    It is important to recognize that price signals are an important aspect of encouraging a shift to the use of lower or zero carbon emission technologies and should be preserved and enhanced, not weakened with more exemptions.

    We also recognize that farmers do not yet have a full suite of options available to replace fossil fueled grain dryers and barn space heating. However, tax rebate programs have been used to support farmers, while still preserving the incentive to consistently evaluate options to reduce emissions by the farming community.

    Exempting these high emission activities from carbon pricing for farmers will only further encourage other sectors to demand similar treatment. This is already a problem as many industries, especially the oil and gas sector, have successfully lobbied for, and achieved, favourable treatment, which allows them to pay a much lower carbon price than others, regardless of their lack of actual degree of being energy intensive and trade exposed.

    For these reasons, the Senate should conduct a thorough review of this proposed legislation and consider making amendments that would require the government to make changes to the tax and regulatory regime that will help accelerate the development and adoption of clean energy technologies that can be used in farm operations.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Private Members Bill C-234 weakens carbon pricing and should not become law appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Reaction to Canada’s 2023 Budget from Environmental Defence Experts

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – Environmental Defence experts on climate change, climate finance, Just Transition, clean transportation and, safeguarding freshwater react to the Federal 2023 budget, released today.

    Julia Levin, Associate Director, National Climate:

    Today’s budget does include significant investments in renewable energy and electrification, however, the support given to climate solutions is still a fraction of what is being spent on subsidizing the fossil fuels that are causing the climate emergency. Rather than finally delivering on the government’s promise to end fossil fuel subsidies, this budget throws more fuel on the fire by funneling even more public dollars into false solutions that serve to prop up the fossil fuel industry. Carbon capture and hydrogen are great for greenwashing oil and gas, but they won’t deliver meaningful emissions reductions.

    Michelle Woodhouse, Program Manager, Water:

    For decades, elected governments have chronically underfunded fresh water initiatives, including those in the Great Lakes basin. Today’s federal budget announcement finally includes much-needed funding for fresh water, and that’s a reason for celebration. We welcome the government’s decision to provide $650 million over ten years to restore and protect Canada’s precious fresh water resources – including the Great Lakes. These investments must address the most critical threats facing Canada’s fresh waters, including nuisance and toxic algae blooms, toxic chemical and plastic pollution, deforestation, and wetland loss. The funds also need to support climate resilience and adaptation, address the impacts of environmental racism, and prioritize just and equitable outcomes for fresh water communities.

    Nate Wallace, Program Manager, Clean Transportation:

    Public transit systems across the country have been crying out for operating funding support to stave off steep fare hikes and deep cuts to service that will push people into their cars, further reducing revenue, and lead to a transit death spiral. A public transit death spiral will make cities more congested, increase carbon emissions, and have the greatest impact on society’s most vulnerable. It is very disappointing to see that this budget does not include much-needed funds to support transit systems now. The federal government’s update on the future of the permanent public transit funding program later this year must accelerate the start of this program and include much-needed funds for transit operations.

    The tax credit for investment in Canada’s zero-emission vehicle manufacturing, batteries and critical minerals is a well measured response to production incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act. Scaling-up investments in clean electricity sourced from renewables will help support grid infrastructure needs for meeting regulated zero-emission vehicles sales targets. Helping more automakers invest in Canada to make more clean cars for more Canadians is a win-win for both the economy and the environment.

    Keith Brooks, Programs Director:

    Budget 2023’s investments in clean electricity are welcome and needed, though extending that support to abated natural gas fired power is a bad idea. There are no examples of natural gas power plants with carbon capture and storage – and the attempts that have been made for coal plants are abject failures. Additionally, even if the emissions from the plant itself could be captured, that would not address the massive fugitive emissions that come from fracking and other forms of gas extraction.

    Aliénor Rougeot, Program Manager, Climate and Energy:

    Today’s budget makes investments in climate solutions that have the potential to create good, green jobs across the country. We welcome the historic addition of labour conditions to tax incentives and the reserved seats for unions on the board of the Canada Growth Fund. However, the government still needs to detail how it will support workers and communities directly impacted by the transition as we phase out fossil fuels and other high-carbon sectors. Canada needs dedicated funding for communities and Indigenous nations to diversify their economy and prepare for a global energy transition – and ensure income support and retraining programs are accessible to those who have been historically excluded from economic opportunities. Regrettably, today’s budget still embraces a polluter-gets-paid principle. While Indigenous communities downstream from the tar sands are currently grappling with massive toxic leaks, the government is handing our taxpayer dollars to the companies causing the damage.”

    Julie Segal, Senior Manager, Climate Finance:

    The federal government seems to understand that both public and private dollars must flow to climate solutions. Today’s budget creates incentives for private capital to shift towards climate action, but still no rules to make sure it happens.

    This budget should have also put money on the table to support vulnerable communities across the world who face the biggest burdens from climate disasters. Canada could have shown leadership by proactively reserving dollars for the United Nation’s loss and damage mechanism. This would have shown the federal government’s commitment to paying off global climate damage debts. Canada previously helped advance commitments from high-emitting countries to support communities and countries most vulnerable to climate damage, and this year Canada needs to step forward with the accompanying funds.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, abraude@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Reaction to Canada’s 2023 Budget from Environmental Defence Experts appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement from Michelle Woodhouse, Water Program Manager, Environmental Defence, on historic $420 million funding for Great Lakes protection

    Federal government is committing $420 million over the next 10 years to protect and preserve the Great Lakes

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Today’s announcement by the government of Canada to devote $420 million over ten years to protect and preserve the Great Lakes is a moment for celebration. This is a historic step towards the protection and restoration of the world’s largest surface freshwater system. Working together with the United States and Indigenous Nations of the Great Lakes is critical if we are to preserve these freshwater lakes for generations to come.

    This investment must address the most critical threats facing the Great Lakes, including nuisance and toxic algae blooms, toxic chemical and plastic pollution, deforestation, and wetland loss. The funds also need to support climate resilience and adaptation, and address environmental racism impacts in the basin by prioritizing just and equitable outcomes for Great Lakes communities.

    The importance of these precious water bodies to this region and the world cannot be overstated. We look forward to working with the Canadian government to ensure this historic investment addresses the most imminent threats to drinkable, swimmable, and fishable waters.

    Background information:

    • The money for the Great Lakes — which will be spread out over 10 years — will add to Ottawa’s action plan to protect large bodies of freshwater in Ontario and Manitoba.
    • The Great Lakes hold 84 per cent of North America’s surface freshwater, 20 per cent of the global surface freshwater systems, and are a drinking water source for over 40 million Great Lakes residents. They are also home to more than 4000 species of animals and plants.
    • The United States has been successful in securing bipartisan funding under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative since 2010. The increased Canadian funding is a welcome addition to this.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement from Michelle Woodhouse, Water Program Manager, Environmental Defence, on historic $420 million funding for Great Lakes protection appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Environmental Defence experts react to the 2023 Ontario budget

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat –

    Keith Brooks, Programs Director: 

    Ontario continues to talk up its “Clean Energy Advantage” though the province is planning to build new gas plants and increase our reliance on gas, making the electricity grid dirtier. This is working at cross-purposes with the goal of attracting more clean energy manufacturing and at odds with the federal government’s commitment to a 100 per cent clean electricity sector by 2035. Ontario’s commitment to gas will prove to be a costly mistake, hurting taxpayers who will be on the hook for paying for gas plants that cannot operate due to their carbon emissions and due to missed economic opportunities thanks to an increasingly dirty grid.

    No one, including businesses, should be fooled by Ontario’s “clean energy credit registry.” It will not increase clean energy generation in any way. It’s a shell game with nothing under any of the shells.

    Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager: 

    Public transit systems across the province have been crying out for operating funding support to stave off steep fare hikes and deep cuts to service that would lead to a vicious death spiral. A transit death spiral will make cities more congested, increase carbon emissions and have the greatest impact on society’s most vulnerable. With no transit operating funding in this budget, Ontario has set the stage for a public transit catastrophe. The federal government must now intervene to save public transit in Ontario, before it is too late.

    Phil Pothen, Ontario Environment Program Manager:

    It is disappointing to see that the Ontario government continues to pay lip service to tackling “gridlock” while throwing away public money on discredited highway and sprawl schemes it knows will make motor vehicle traffic – and the resultant greenhouse gas emissions – far worse. The government’s Highway 413, Holland Marsh Highway (a.k.a. Bradford Bypass) and 401 widening schemes, in particular, are nothing more than public subsidies for car-dependent sprawl in Caledon, East Gwillimbury and the outer reaches of Durham that will destroy vast swathes of farmland and habitat.

    While we are relieved to see that the Ontario government has not fully abandoned plans for Transit Oriented Development around major transit stations, its refusal to commit to any significant increase in funding for infrastructure like new and expanded schools (beyond what was allocated in previous budgets) casts doubt on whether it actually intends or expects to see much-needed densification happen. It seems calculated to provoke opposition to the new housing in existing neighborhoods that we desperately need to curb sprawl.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Brittany Harris, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Environmental Defence experts react to the 2023 Ontario budget appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • House of Commons must make passing Bill S-5 a priority

    Long-awaited bill to update Canadian Environmental Protection Act faces final MP vote

    OTTAWA/TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHNAABEG PEOPLE – Bill S-5 which seeks to reform the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) for the first in more than two decades, must be passed into law as soon as possible this spring, says five leading health and environmental groups. The House of Commons committee studying the legislation reported the bill with amendments yesterday. MPs must now approve the bill in a final vote.

    While Bill S-5 does not address all aspects of CEPA in need of modernization, its passage will represent important progress for the following reasons.

    • It introduces long-overdue updates for the control of toxic substances and dangerous chemicals, including requiring that priority be given to prohibiting the most hazardous substances. The bill also updates the framework for assessing and managing toxic substances and improves transparency and accountability.
    • The right to a healthy environment will be recognized for the first time under federal law. The legislation establishes a new duty for the government to uphold the principles of environmental justice, intergenerational equity, and non-regression. It also requires the federal government to consider the cumulative impacts of toxics, and their effects on vulnerable populations.

    We welcomed the introduction of the original version of this bill in April 2021 and called for it to be prioritized and strengthened. Following the 2021 elections, the bill was reintroduced in the Senate as S-5 last year and then progressed to the House. The Senate and House committees that studied the bill passed amendments that improve key provisions, addressing some – though  not all – of our recommendations.

    We now call on all MPs to prioritize the passage of these important updates to CEPA, Canada’s cornerstone environmental law.

    While passage of the bill is urgent, it is regrettable that members of the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development rejected proposed amendments to require action on air pollution, labelling of hazardous substances in consumer products, and clear timelines for action on toxics, among other proposals such as improving control of genetically modified animals and strengthening CEPA requirements for pollution prevention planning, to further strengthen Bill S-5.

    Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault has indicated that he intends to introduce a second CEPA modernization bill. It will need to address these outstanding recommendations for CEPA reform, to complement Bill S-5.

    The groups supporting this statement are:

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, media@environmentaldefence.ca, 705-435-8611

    Viorica Lorcencova, viorica.lorcencova@acsqc.ca, 514-443-8437

    Jane McArthur, media@cape.ca, jane@cape.ca, 647-762-9168

    Brendan Glauser, bglauser@davidsuzuki.org, 604-356-8829

    Sean O’Shea, Ecojustice, soshea@ecojustice.ca, 416-368-7533 ext. 523

    The post House of Commons must make passing Bill S-5 a priority appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Will Budget 2023 Eliminate Fossil Fuel Subsidies?

    Aerial view of A large oil refinery along the Athabasca River in Alberta's Oilsands, showing multiple smoke stacks.

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – On March 28, Minister Freeland will publish this year’s federal budget. Environmental Defence is calling on the Minister to fulfill the government’s promise and use this budget to finally eliminate fossil fuel subsidies.

    Our new analysis shows that in 2022, the federal government provided at least $20.215 billion in financial support to the fossil fuel industry despite oil and gas companies making record profits last year. The Pathways Alliance – a coalition of the six companies that make up 95 per cent of the oilsands – spent only 0.4 per cent of their total 2022 cashflow on their climate and environmental goals. Yet, the federal government extended even greater financial support in 2022 than the previous two years, which totalled $8.6 billion and $18 billion respectively.

    “Budget 2023 is a critical opportunity for the Government of Canada to uphold its commitment to ending all fossil fuel subsidies and redirect that support into clean energy,” said Julia Levin, Associate Director, National Climate at Environmental Defence Canada. “Oil and gas companies – which are raking in huge cash flows and funneling that money towards their shareholders instead of reducing their emissions – keep lobbying for more and more subsidies for carbon capture and hydrogen. These technologies are not climate solutions: they are dangerous distractions that will prolong our dependence on fossil fuels. Every dollar spent on carbon capture or hydrogen is a dollar that cannot be spent on proven, effective and affordable climate solutions, such as solar and wind energy.”

    What Environmental Defence is Looking For in Budget 2023:

    • An end to fossil fuel subsidies. The Government of Canada has committed to ending fossil fuel subsidies this year (a promise first made in 2009). The federal budget would be an ideal moment to lay out a clear roadmap and framework to ensure that promise is met. In addition, Budget 2023 should eliminate existing tax breaks, as President Biden did earlier this month in his proposed budget plan.

    • No subsidies for false solutions (Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage, fossil-derived hydrogen). The science is clear: fossil fuels are causing the climate crisis. A transition off of fossil fuels is necessary to meet international goals of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees. Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) and fossil hydrogen prolong our dependence on fossil fuels, with limited impact on lifecycle emissions. They are not part of a net-zero plan. The proposed hydrogen investment tax credit should only be made available for hydrogen produced from renewable energy, based on the recommendations of over 100 academics and 55 environmental and health organizations. Similarly, there should be no funding made available for CCUS (a recommendation made by over 400 of Canada’s leading academics and experts ahead of Budget 2022).

    • Aggressive spending on renewable energy, electricity transmission and energy efficiency.

    “The Government of Canada promised to end fossils back in 2009, yet continues to give billions of dollars to the very companies fueling the climate crisis,” said Levin. “The pathway to zero emissions and a climate–safe future does not include subsidies or public financing for the oil and gas industry. It’s time for Canada to turn off the financial taps to Canada’s most polluting industry.”

    See our backgrounder for more details on Canada’s 2022 subsidies as well as what Environmental Defence will be watching for in Budget 2023.

    Additional Material: Letter to Minister Freeland on hydrogen subsidies in Budget 2023 from 100+ academics and 55 civil society organizations:

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Will Budget 2023 Eliminate Fossil Fuel Subsidies? appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • ATU Canada and Environmental Defence Call on Premiers, Minister Freeland to Save Public Transit in Upcoming Budgets

    ATU Canada is the latest in a series of groups sounding the alarm bell on the public transit death spiral

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – Today, Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Canada joined forces with Environmental Defence to call on federal and provincial governments to work together and save public transit systems from a financial crisis caused by pandemic-related lower ridership and over-dependence on farebox revenues. They also called on federal and provincial governments to work together on long-term solutions to permanently increase operating funding for public transit.

    “Over the next two weeks, the Federal Government as well as the Government of Ontario will be unveiling their budgets. We need to see crucial operating funding for public transit to prevent drastic service cuts and fare increases that will push people into their cars, further reducing revenue, and lead to a transit death spiral. The federal government has worked with provinces to save public transit before, and they can do it again,” said John Di Nino, President of ATU Canada. “We’re calling on all Premiers and Minister Freeland to make funding for public transit operations a priority in their budgets.”

    “As this week’s IPCC report highlighted, we have a limited window to prevent the catastrophic impacts of a heating climate and it requires deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, now. Canada is currently off track from meeting its 2030 transportation sector emissions reduction target by eight million tonnes. Allowing a public transit death spiral to occur is an unacceptable policy choice. Instead, we need the federal government and provincial governments to invest in improving public transit service, to bring back riders and tackle the climate emergency,” said Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager at Environmental Defence.

    • The City of Toronto has budgeted $366 million in its 2023 budget in expected transit assistance from federal and provincial governments, and the TTC expects a further $350-$420 million sized hole in its budget in 2024. The City of Ottawa has a $39 million dollar hole in its transit operating budget this year. A January 2023 internal survey by the Ontario Public Transit Association has estimated an operational deficit of at least $510 million for Ontario’s entire public transit sector.
    • In February, more than 100 academics in the Toronto region signed an open letter to the municipal, provincial and federal governments calling on them to intervene and prevent a death spiral caused by Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) service cuts.
    • The Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) estimates that for every 10 per cent loss in transit ridership below pre-pandemic levels, transit systems across Canada collectively lose $470 million per year. Ridership is currently at approximately 70 per cent Canada-wide. Last week, CUTA called on federal and provincial governments to come to the aid of public transit systems.
    • Last week, a coalition of 15 Environmental Groups, including Environmental Defence, Équiterre, Greenpeace Canada, the David Suzuki Foundation and Climate Action Network Canada, signed an open letter calling on Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to intervene and stop the public transit death spiral.

    Issue Backgrounder

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/report/stopping-the-public-transit-death-spiral/

    Additional Resources

    https://cutaactu.ca/canadian-transit-systems-need-renewed-operating-support/

    https://cutaactu.ca/cuta-urges-ontario-government-to-follow-bcs-lead-in-supporting-public-transit/

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    ABOUT ATU CANADA (atucanada.ca): The Amalgamated Transit Union Canada (ATU Canada) is a strong voice representing over 34,000 transit professionals across Canada.  We lobby all levels of government for policy changes that protect and improve the rights of transit workers and riders, as we continue to  service our communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    Rose Carusone, ATU Canada, rose@atucanada.ca

     

    The post ATU Canada and Environmental Defence Call on Premiers, Minister Freeland to Save Public Transit in Upcoming Budgets appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Public Interest Groups at Supreme Court of Canada to Defend Federal Environmental Law from Alberta Challenge 

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – This week, the federal government is defending its Impact Assessment Act (IAA) (formerly Bill C-69) at the Supreme Court of Canada. Last year, the Alberta Court of Appeal issued a non-binding opinion that the IAA is unconstitutional; the Government of Canada is appealing that opinion. The hearing will be heard on March 21 and 22.

    The IAA is the federal government’s primary tool for assessing the environmental and social impacts of major projects and proposals, such as pipelines, mines, transmission lines, and dams. It is one of Canada’s most fundamental environmental laws, and plays a key role in ensuring sound decisions over projects affecting nature, communities, and Indigenous rights.

    MiningWatch Canada and Environmental Defence Canada, represented by Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA); Nature Canada, represented by West Coast Environmental Law (West Coast); and the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) are intervening in the hearings to defend environmental protections in the IAA. CELA and West Coast are also representing themselves.

    The IAA, which came into force in 2019, was an attempt to strengthen Canada’s environmental laws and fix the project review process, which had been gutted in 2012 by the  government of the day. The IAA does not fully restore protections lost by the 2012 rollbacks – for example, the IAA only triggers around a dozen assessments per year, compared to thousands of projects assessed annually under Canada’s original assessment law. However, it makes important strides forward, including legally requiring assessments to consider a project’s climate impacts.

    “Impact assessment is all about looking before you leap,” says Stephen Hazell, interim Policy Director with Nature Canada. “Provincial and federal governments share the legal authority to protect the environment and conserve nature. As intervenors, we will be making submissions to the court that the IAA sits squarely within federal authority.”

    While it was before Parliament, Bill C-69 was the target of massive opposition from the oil and gas lobby. Back in May 2019, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney threatened that if all the amendments to Bill C-69 demanded by the oil and gas industry were not adopted, the Province would launch a constitutional challenge on the grounds that the law intrudes on provincial rights. In February 2021 – despite many of the oil and gas industry’s amendments being adopted – Alberta did just that, arguing that the IAA goes beyond the federal government’s constitutional authority.

    “For the first time, we have a law that requires the consideration of a project’s total carbon pollution before it gets approved. The Government of Alberta is attacking that, just as they have other important climate and environmental rules,” says Julia Levin, Associate Director, National Climate with Environmental Defence. “We’re in a climate emergency. The federal and provincial governments must use every tool in the toolbox to tackle the climate crisis together.”

    Given some provinces’ weak environmental protection and weak environmental assessment frameworks, it is more important than ever to have strong federal laws.

    “The federal government has a crucial role in safeguarding our communities, our health, and the environment where provincial governments can’t, or won’t. Ontario, for example, doesn’t even require mining projects to undergo environmental assessments, and most provinces have major gaps when it comes to cleaning up closed mines and wells and making them safe,” says Jamie Kneen, MiningWatch Canada’s national program co-lead. “We need to be able to make informed decisions to ensure that only acceptable projects go forward, and that those projects are as safe as they can be.”

    “Fundamentally, affirmation that the federal government has jurisdiction to consider climate-polluting greenhouse gas emissions and Canada’s climate commitments when assessing major projects is essential to securing human and planetary health,” says Dr. Joe Vipond, emergency physician and CAPE Past President. “This view aligns with CAPE’s physician-led approach to mitigate climate change in order to protect human health.”

    The Supreme Court of Canada’s hearing is scheduled for March 21 and March 22, with appearances by the above interveners scheduled for March 21. The hearing will be live-streamed here.

    About MININGWATCH: MiningWatch Canada is a non-profit organization created to provide a public interest response to the threats to public health, the environment, and community interests posed by irresponsible mineral policies and practices in Canada and around the world. It provides timely information and support to mining-affected communities and related organizations, and works for better mining-related policies.

    About ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE CANADA: Environmental Defence Canada is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    About NATURE CANADA: Nature Canada has been a voice for nature for more than 80 years. We are a charitable organization advocating the conservation of land and the protection of waterways, and oceans to help stop the loss of species. We facilitate mobilization among more than 900 nature organizations and 100,000 nature-lovers while helping Canadians connect to nature.

    About WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW: West Coast Environmental Law is a non-profit group of environmental lawyers and strategists dedicated to safeguarding the environment through law. West Coast works to transform environmental decision-making and strengthen legal protection for the environment through collaborative legal strategies that bridge Indigenous and Canadian law.

    About the CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICIANS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT: The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment works to better human health by protecting the planet. CAPE supports physicians to be advocates for healthier environments and ecosystems, and collaborates with other organizations, nationally and internationally, to work effectively and build power together.

    About CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW ASSOCIATION: Canadian Environmental Law Association (“CELA”) is a public interest law clinic dedicated to environmental equity, justice, and health. Founded in 1970, CELA is one of the oldest environmental advocates for environmental protection in the country. With funding from Legal Aid Ontario (LAO),  CELA provides free legal services relating to environmental justice in Ontario, including representing qualifying low-income and vulnerable or disadvantaged communities in litigation. CELA also works on environmental legal education and reform initiatives.

    – 30 –

    For more information, or to request an interview, please contact:

    The post Public Interest Groups at Supreme Court of Canada to Defend Federal Environmental Law from Alberta Challenge  appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement welcoming the new federal study to address threats to Rouge National Park and key portions of the Greenbelt removed by the Ontario government

    Statement from Tim Gray, Executive Director, Environmental Defence

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Today, Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced a new study to examine existing and new threats to Rouge National Park.

    This study is needed due to the Ontario government’s decision to remove 4,700 acres of land from the protection of the Greenbelt directly adjacent to Rouge National Park. The province’s action left the federal government with no choice but to act. The ecological integrity of the park, federally listed endangered species, indigenous rights, farming and action on climate change are just some of the values put at risk by the provincial government’s decision to remove the legislated protections for the Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve (DRAP) and to remove these lands from the Greenbelt.

    “Premier Ford left Minister Guilbeault with no choice but to act to protect key ecological, cultural and economic values within and surrounding Rouge National Park. The province’s reckless actions require a thorough evaluation and then federal action to protect values of national and international significance,” said Tim Gray.

    “There are no good reasons for the provincial government to have broken their promise to protect the Greenbelt. Nowhere is this more true than for the farms, forests and wetlands of DRAP. Fortunately, these lands could now have a protected future instead of being bulldozed for car-dependent sprawl.”

    In addition to the DRAP lands, there are adjacent and nearby lands owned by Transport Canada and the Toronto Region Conservation Authority that should be considered in the study for inclusion in an expanded Rouge National Park for the benefit of all Canadians.

    “We, and millions of other Ontarians, look forward to working with the federal government to ensure that all the values of Rouge National Park, DRAP and other surrounding lands are protected in perpetuity.”

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Brittany Harris, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement welcoming the new federal study to address threats to Rouge National Park and key portions of the Greenbelt removed by the Ontario government appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Environmental Defence experts react to the new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – Environmental Defence experts on climate change, clean transportation and climate finance react to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) AR6 Synthesis Report, released today.

    Julia Levin, Associate Director, National Climate:

    “The world’s scientists have once again rung the alarm bells on the frightening future that awaits if we fail to tackle the climate crisis this decade. The science is clear: fossil fuels are causing the climate emergency. A rapid and equitable phaseout of fossil fuels must be the centerpiece of any science-based strategy. The good news is that we can rapidly transition towards 100 per cent renewable energy if governments stop caving to oil and and gas companies. Decades of obstruction by the fossil fuel industry have led us to the brink of catastrophe. And now those same actors are trying to delay climate action by advancing dangerous distractions like carbon capture.”

    Aliénor Rougeot, Climate and Energy Program Manager:

    “Today’s report shows we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build a cleaner, healthier, and more prosperous future. Let’s seize it. The transition away from fossil fuels is no longer a matter of if, but when. Governments need to show us their plans for how we will make this transition fair, orderly, and beneficial for workers and communities in every part of the country. The upcoming federal budget is Canada’s next chance to do so. The time for bold action and investments in real solutions is now.”

    Julie Segal, Senior Manager Climate Finance:

    “Our global economy and financial system are still designed for climate failure, yet blowing past 1.5C is untenable. Greenhouse gas emissions this past decade were higher than ever. An economy that keeps our planet alive is not a cost, but an investment opportunity into cleaner energy and safer buildings. Dollars must be redirected into three- to six-times more clean investment now. In this coming federal budget, Canada has to demonstrate that it knows climate justice is intrinsic to climate action, by stepping up with dollars to support the countries most vulnerable to climate change, while shifting every private and public dollar at home to a sustainable economy.”

    Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager:

    “The IPCC could not be more clear – we have a limited window to prevent the catastrophic impacts of a heating climate and it requires deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, now. Next week’s federal budget is one of the few opportunities we have left to turn the ship before it crashes. That means Canada  cannot allow huge pandemic-related budget holes in public transit agencies’ operating budgets turn into a vicious cycle of service cuts and fare hikes that would drive riders into their polluting cars, and take a generation or more to recover from. Instead of hitting pause on funding new transit projects until 2026, Canada should be accelerating public transit expansion plans now with federal funds in the upcoming budget.”

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Environmental Defence experts react to the new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • MPs fail to create product labelling requirements for harmful chemicals

    Lack of labelling requirements under CEPA leaves consumers uninformed about harmful ingredients in their products

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – MPs missed an opportunity to drive faster action on the reduction of toxic substances by voting down a proposed amendment to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), that would have required the federal government to ensure harmful chemicals in consumer products are labelled.

    Addressing toxic chemical exposure, transparency and disclosure of hazardous substances in the products people living in Canada use every day is a critical gap in the federal government’s bill to modernize CEPA. Greater transparency is needed to give consumers the basic “right to know” about the products we use. It would also force product manufacturers to reformulate their ingredients and materials to use less harmful substances in the Canadian marketplace. The right to know about the presence of harmful substances is an important element of the right to a healthy environment.

    Establishing transparency and disclosure for product ingredients is a basic element for driving industry accountability for the impacts of product-based exposures. In the absence of labelling requirements under CEPA, consumers will be left in the dark about ingredients that could harm their health or the environment. This lack of transparency has real-life consequences for the health of people in Canada and the environment. Exposure to harmful chemicals will continue to put people and ecosystems at risk.

    Groups supporting this statement:

    Environmental Defence

    Breast Cancer Action Quebec

    Background information:

    • MPs on the House of Commons Environment Committee (ENVI) rejected amendments moved by MP Laurel Collins and MP Monique Pauzé that would have established a mechanism for labelling harmful ingredients in products.
    • Bill S-5, which seeks to reform CEPA for the first time in more than two decades, recently completed its review by the ENVI Committee. The ENVI Committee last reviewed CEPA in 2017 and recommended amendments to the Act to require mandatory labelling of harmful product ingredients.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, media@environmentaldefence.ca, 705-435-8611

    Viorica Lorcencova, viorica.lorcencova@acsqc.ca, 514-443-8437

    The post MPs fail to create product labelling requirements for harmful chemicals appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Climate Groups Sound the Alarm on Public Transit Death Spiral

    15 environmental groups signed an open letter calling on Minister Freeland for federal funding to save public transit systems

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – Today, a coalition of 15 environmental groups, including Environmental Defence, Équiterre, Greenpeace Canada, the David Suzuki Foundation and Climate Action Network Canada, signed an open letter calling on Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to intervene once again to save public transit systems from financial crisis related to lower farebox revenues due to the pandemic.

    They also called on the Finance Minister to accelerate the rollout of the permanent public transit funding program, to put transit systems on a secure financial footing and on a path towards service expansion at a pace consistent with meeting Canada’s climate goals.

    As the open letter to Minister Freeland states: “Public transit systems across the country are at risk of falling into a death spiral. That is a vicious cycle of service cuts and fare hikes that push people away from public transit and into their cars, further decreasing revenue, leading to further service cuts. If this is allowed to happen, it will make cities more congested, increase carbon emissions, and have the greatest impact on society’s most vulnerable. The federal government has saved public transit from disaster before, and it can do it again.”

    Cities across Canada have budgeted hundreds of millions of dollars in transit operating support that they are expecting federal and provincial governments to fill, as they have for the past two years. Previous federal operating support for transit was conditional upon provincial matching contributions, prompting some provinces to step up where they otherwise would not have.

    • The Canadian Urban Transit Association estimates that for every 10 per cent loss in transit ridership below pre-pandemic levels, transit systems across Canada collectively lose $470 million per year. Ridership is currently at approximately 70 per cent Canada-wide.
    • The City of Toronto has budgeted $366 million in its 2023 budget in expected transit assistance from federal and provincial governments, and the TTC expects a further $350-$420 million sized hole in its budget in 2024.
    • A January 2023 internal survey by the Ontario Public Transit Association has estimated an operational deficit of at least $510 million for Ontario’s entire public transit sector.
    • The Association du transport urbain du Québec estimates that Quebec systems have a collective deficit of $560 million in 2023.
    • Metro Vancouver’s transit system, TransLink, has requested $250 million from the federal government, to be matched by British Columbia, to prevent service cuts and to enable the agency to get out of ‘survival mode’ to focus on service expansion.

    “Canada’s climate community stands behind saving public transit. In a climate emergency, our political leaders must do the same. This joint statement highlights our common conviction that allowing a public transit death spiral to occur is an unacceptable policy choice. The upcoming federal budget will be a litmus test of whether Canada is serious about cutting transportation emissions,” said Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager at Environmental Defence.

    List of signatory groups

    Environmental Defence Canada
    Canadian Association of Nurses for the Environment
    Citizens Environmental Alliance of Southwestern Ontario
    Climate Action Network Canada (CanRAC)
    Conservation Council of New Brunswick
    The Council of Canadians
    The David Suzuki Foundation
    Ecology Action Centre
    Équiterre
    Grandmothers Act to Save the Planet (GASP)
    Greenpeace Canada
    Green13
    JustEarth Coalition
    MiningWatch Canada
    Music Declares Emergency Canada

    Open Letter

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Open-Letter-Minister-Freeland-2023-Federal-Budget-Public-Transit-Funding.pdf

    Issue Backgrounder

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/report/stopping-the-public-transit-death-spiral/

    Additional Resources

    https://cutaactu.ca/canadian-transit-systems-need-renewed-operating-support/

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, abraude@environmentaldefence.ca

     

    The post Climate Groups Sound the Alarm on Public Transit Death Spiral appeared first on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement from Indigenous and environmental experts on the federal government’s enforcement of the Fisheries Act in response to Imperial Oil leak

    ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE, KEEPERS OF THE WATER

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Yesterday, in response to the spill of over 5.3 million liters of toxic wastewater from Imperial Oil’s tar sands tailings ponds, the federal government issued a Fisheries Act direction – requiring the company to take immediate action to prevent any seepage from entering fish-bearing waters. This followed testing by federal officers showing the leaking wastewater is harmful to fish.

    Imperial Oil failed to report this ongoing, large-scale leak of toxic tailings water to both the Alberta and federal governments and should be prosecuted under the Fisheries Act. The federal government should be seeking convictions under the Act for both individuals and the company as a deterrent against such behaviour in the future. Issuing only a clean-up order after the company engaged in such flagrantly misleading actions only encourages Imperial and other polluters to duplicate this type of damaging behaviour in the future.

    Quotes:

    “The federal government is doing the right thing by taking action under the Fisheries Act in response to Imperial Oil’s disastrous spill. This is an important step to limit the damage done to fish and downstream communities. But why is Imperial Oil not being prosecuted under the Fisheries Act? The leak was covered up for ten months. Those responsible for the irreparable damage done must be held accountable. We join Chief Allan Adam in urging the government to use all legal tools available to them to respond to this disaster.” Said Aliénor Rougeot, Climate and Energy Program Manager, Environmental Defence Canada

    “While we don’t have a lot of answers yet, confirmation of the harm to wildlife is essential information, and it is different from what Imperial, the AER, and Danielle Smith told us. Alberta is Canada’s biggest oil and gas producer, yet First Nations and Métis settlements still live in poverty. Not all of our people benefit from the oil industry’s presence in our territories. They are taking the so-called resources and leaving toxic zones where the biodiversity that has sustained us for tens of thousands of years is being purposely poisoned. They are taking the life surrounding us, leaving us with a death and destruction path growing further downstream daily. We stand in solidarity with the Nations and support their demands for justice and accountability.” Said Jesse Cardinal, Executive Director of Keepers of the Water

    Background information:

    • The Fisheries Act is one of Canada’s only pieces of federal legislation protecting freshwaters. It prohibits the disposal of substances harmful to fish into fish-bearing waters or into any place that may reasonably enter fish-bearing waters.
    • In 2020, the Commission for Environmental Cooperation – an environmental watchdog created under NAFTA – concluded there is ample evidence that tailings ponds are leaking into groundwater. It found that tailings ponds appeared to be operating in violation of the federal Fisheries Act.
    • See our tailings fact sheet for more information.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    About KEEPERS OF THE WATER (keepersofthewater.ca): Keepers of the Water are First Nations, Métis, Inuit, environmental groups, concerned citizens, and communities working together for the protection of water, air, land, and all living things within the Arctic Ocean Drainage Basin.

    -30-

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Paula Gray, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    Jesse Cardinal, Keepers of the Water, ed@keepersofthewater.ca

    The post Statement from Indigenous and environmental experts on the federal government’s enforcement of the Fisheries Act in response to Imperial Oil leak appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • New Colorado Law Makes it Easier for the Wrongly Convicted to Prove Innocence Using DNA Evidence

    (Denver, CO — March 10, 2023) Today, Governor Jared Polis signed into law legislation that fixes Colorado’s post-conviction DNA testing statute to help ensure that wrongly convicted Coloradans can access DNA testing that can prove their innocence. The legislation was passed overwhelmingly in Colorado’s House and Senate last month. 

    “This victory marks the day that many more innocent Coloradans got the chance to prove their innocence in court,” said Innocence Project State Policy Advocate Bay Scoggin. “This bill makes critical changes to a decades-old law. Colorado had lagged behind other states in updating its post-conviction DNA statute according to best practices learned over the last two decades — until now. We are very grateful to the Korey Wise Innocence Project at the University of Colorado, Representative Daugherty, the bill’s primary sponsor, and all the co-sponsors who showed such great leadership in getting this bill done. We can’t wait to see the results.”

    “It’s been encouraging to see such strong bipartisan support for this important improvement to Colorado’s DNA testing statute. The law gives new hope to the wrongfully convicted who will now have a fair opportunity to secure the DNA testing they need to prove their innocence,” said Jeanne Segil, Policy Director at the Korey Wise Innocence Project.

    In the 20 years since Colorado’s original post-conviction DNA testing statute was enacted, it has only allowed a handful of petitioners to access DNA testing. This has resulted in only three DNA-related exonerations in this state, including the case of Robert “Rider” Dewey. This is far fewer DNA-based exonerations than other states of a similar size that have more modern post-conviction DNA testing statutes. Most states have adjusted their mechanisms for post-conviction DNA testing to reflect advances in DNA technology and a more nuanced understanding of the role of DNA evidence. Colorado now joins these states.

    The law, which will go into effect on October 23, 2023, will improve Colorado’s post-conviction statute by making these updates to the current law: 

    • Changes the standard for obtaining testing, allowing people with reasonable claims of innocence to access evidence in the state’s control.
    • Allows formerly incarcerated people to access DNA testing to prove their innocence and clear their names.
    • Allows for subsequent petitions for DNA testing, particularly in cases where advances in DNA technology make it possible to obtain clearer results.
    • Ensures that all parties have a voice in determining the means and methods of testing, and allows for the testing to be conducted at private laboratories upon agreement of all parties.
    • Enables courts to vacate convictions upon receiving DNA evidence that proves a person’s innocence.
    • Ensures that victims’ rights are respected and the Victims Rights Act is followed.

    The post New Colorado Law Makes it Easier for the Wrongly Convicted to Prove Innocence Using DNA Evidence appeared first on Innocence Project.

  • Statement from Julie Segal on the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ (OSFI) new climate disclosure rules, guideline B-15

    Now is the time for climate finance leadership from government

    Statement by Julie Segal Manager, Climate Finance, Environmental Defence

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Canadian political leaders must step forward on climate finance and build on OSFI’s new disclosure guidelines. Prime Minister Trudeau and Minister Freeland should set clear rules for the financial sector to ensure investments get in line with 1.5C. Canada’s financial institutions should cut emissions, not just count them – in a sinking boat you have to plug the leaking holes, not just disclose them. Without government leadership to align financial flows with climate targets, our economy risks sinking. Prime Minister Trudeau set climate goals which Canada can only meet if private finance flows in the right direction.

    OSFI said it best: “Delaying climate policy action increases the overall economic impacts and risks to financial stability.” In other words, Canadian’s savings are at risk as climate change worsens, and neglecting to set the right rules leaves Canada’s financial system at risk of capsizing. 

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Alex Ross, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement from Julie Segal on the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ (OSFI) new climate disclosure rules, guideline B-15 appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement from Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager at Environmental Defence, on Toronto Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie’s request for emergency transit funding

    Statement by Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager, Environmental Defence

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People –The TTC’s budget crisis is not unique. Cities across the country are counting on hundreds of millions of dollars in expected public transit support which must come in the 2023 federal budget – and be matched by provinces. If it doesn’t, public transit systems across the country are at risk of falling into a death spiral. That is a vicious cycle of service cuts and fare hikes that push people away from public transit and into their cars, further decreasing revenue, leading to further service cuts. If this is allowed to happen, it will make cities more congested, increase carbon emissions, and have the greatest impact on society’s most vulnerable. The federal government has saved public transit from disaster before, and it can do it again.

    When the TTC responded to operating deficits in the 1990s with service cuts and fare hikes, ridership dramatically declined and took 17 years to recover. If the job of saving public transit is abandoned before ridership can recover from the pandemic, this same story will be repeated in Toronto and in cities across Canada. And all the money spent to date preventing cuts will have been wasted. In a climate emergency, we can’t afford to put progress on hold for another generation.

    Issue Backgrounder:

    https://environmentaldefence.ca/report/stopping-the-public-transit-death-spiral/ 

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Alex Ross, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

    The post Statement from Nate Wallace, Clean Transportation Program Manager at Environmental Defence, on Toronto Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie’s request for emergency transit funding appeared first on Environmental Defence.

  • NEW REPORT: More than enough land available to build over 2 million homes in the Greater Golden Horseshoe by 2031, without touching the Greenbelt or expanding urban boundaries

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – A new report makes it clear that there is more than enough land already in the planning pipelines to build over 2 million homes by 2031, far more than the 1.5 million housing units the Province wants built across Ontario. This makes it evident there is no planning rationale for building on the Greenbelt or mandating sprawl development.

    As many experts have pointed out since the beginning of the Ontario government’s push for settlement boundary expansions in the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH), the region has a large supply – more than 350 km2 at last count – of unbuilt “greenfield” land already designated for development. There is so much existing land inside urban boundaries that the region would need to double the rate of land consumption in the 21st century in order to consume it all within three decades. With good faith efforts to enhance the density and walkability of new developments, and to direct the bulk of growth to existing neighborhoods that need it, there is no reason to expect that the GGH would ever need to expand beyond existing urban boundaries, let alone into the Greenbelt.

    The new report, entitled: Review of Housing Unit Capacity Identified in Initial Land Needs Assessments Prepared for Upper and Single Tier Municipalities in the Greater Golden Horseshoe and authored by Registered Professional Planner Kevin Eby, reveals that even without accounting for such improvements in land use, and despite recent changes designed to promote more wasteful land use patterns, no additional farms, forests or protected Greenbelt areas would be needed to meet the provincial government’s goal of building 1.5 million homes in Ontario by 2031. The research was provided to the member organizations of the Alliance for a Liveable Ontario and its key findings include:

    • Even without improvements in land use, and accounting for government interventions designed to reduce land efficiency, cumulative capacity inside existing urban boundaries at the time the new 2022 official plans were being prepared already exceeded two million units in the GGH alone.

    • That is almost twice the cumulative number of housing units required to be built by 2031 within the 25 GGH municipalities that have been recently assigned new housing targets by the Province.

    • Many municipalities required no, or extremely limited, urban area expansions to accommodate population growth forecast by the Growth Plan to 2051.

    • No additional overall housing capacity would be required in the GGH to meet the GGH’s share of the 1.5 million housing target for the Province of Ontario by 2031.

    This research suggests that the dismantling of environmental protection and anti-sprawl rules undertaken by the provincial government starting in 2020 are not – as the government has implied – required to achieve the construction of more housing.  Such measures included:

    • Removal of 7400 acres of protected Greenbelt lands.

    • Expansion of urban boundaries by thousands of hectares through provincial approval – or wholesale replacement of – City and Regional Official plans.

    • Proposed continued use of Minister’s Zoning Orders to facilitate development of additional greenfield housing development.

    • Proposed elimination of upper-tier municipal planning functions.

    • Removal of Conservation Authorities’ ability to work with municipalities on planning issues, including natural heritage conservation.

    • Potential forced sale of lands owned by Conservation Authorities capable of accommodating future housing.

    • Proposed elimination of the Growth Plan for the GGH.

    The homes required to reach the projected 2 million number could be built in the range of types and forms, and at the lower than beneficial densities that have occurred in the past, and still achieve this goal. Even more homes could be created in this same area if forms and densities were built that would provide optimal arrangements for supporting public transit, walkability, higher amounts of public amenities and lower infrastructure costs.

    The new research report summarizes information that is publicly available from regional governments across the GGH and demonstrates how many homes were planned to be built inside the urban boundaries that existed before the 2022 boundary expansion. The summary of projected housing numbers also reflect planned building at the densities that the municipalities had chosen during their respective Lands Needs Assessment processes. These housing densities are generally lower than recommended by the Growth Plan to ensure that optimal numbers of people are living per acre to facilitate affordable transit and infrastructure costs. Therefore, the 2 million total projected homes that could be built represent a conservative estimate of total possible future supply to 2031.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    The following member organizations of the Alliance for a Livable Ontario have supported this work and are available to comment on its implications:

    Olivia O’Connor, ACORN, Hamilton. hamilton@acorncanada.org

    Michelle Tom, More Neighbours Hamilton. michtom20@gmail.com, twitter handle: @morehamont

    Brittany Harris, Communications Manager, Environmental Defence. media@environmentaldefence.ca

    Ian Borsuk, Acting Executive Director, Environment Hamilton. iborsuk@environmenthamilton.org

    Chief Kelly LaRocca, Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. klarocca@scugogfirstnation.com

    Max Hansgen, President, National Farmers Union, Ontario. president@nfuontario.ca

    Jane Fogal, Halton Hills Climate Action. jane.fogal@gmail.com

    Kim Bradshaw, Stop Sprawl Halton. kabradshaw@live.com

    David Crombie, Friends of the Golden Horseshoe. davidcrombie@rogers.com

    Anne Bell, Ontario Nature. anneb@ontarionature.org

    The post NEW REPORT: More than enough land available to build over 2 million homes in the Greater Golden Horseshoe by 2031, without touching the Greenbelt or expanding urban boundaries appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement on InfluenceMap’s report on Canada’s oil & gas industry undermining climate policy

    Statement by Aly Hyder Ali, Oil and Gas Program Manager, Environmental Defence

    Ottawa | Traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People – A new report from InfluenceMap confirms the impact of oil and gas lobbying efforts which Environmental Defence has been tracking: that Canada’s six largest oil and gas companies, along with the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), have been a major obstacle to Canada achieving its climate goals.

    Despite publicly claiming support for climate action, the oil and gas companies along with CAPP have consistently pushed for the expansion of the fossil fuel industry, in direct opposition to the International Energy Agency’s call for a rapid phase out of fossil fuels.

    Not surprisingly, these companies and CAPP are adamantly against the proposed oil and gas emissions cap that is projected to be implemented by the end of this year. The oil and gas sector’s emissions are the largest and the fastest growing source of climate pollution in Canada – having increased by nearly 20 per cent since 2005. Without a strong and ambitious emissions cap, Canada has no chance of limiting its pollution and doing its part to keep global average temperatures below 1.5 C.

    If it were left up to oil and gas companies, they would be allowed to operate without accountability and continue polluting at the expense of all of our futures. Their public net-zero commitments are nothing but a weak attempt at greenwashing their destructive operations. As the InfluenceMap report shows, behind the scenes they are working hard to advocate against much needed emissions reducing regulations, such as the oil and gas emissions cap, while pushing for more production despite the consequences for the climate.

    Environmental Defence’s latest monthly roundup of Canada’s oil and gas industry lobbying the federal government is here.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    – 30 –

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Allen Braude, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca

     

    The post Statement on InfluenceMap’s report on Canada’s oil & gas industry undermining climate policy appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.

  • Statement from Alienor Rougeot, Environmental Defence Climate and Energy Program Manager on the Sustainable Jobs Action Plan by the Government of Canada

    Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – The plan is a real improvement to Canada’s approach to managing the transition to a low-carbon economy, and we welcome the government’s commitment to bringing affected parties to the table. However for this plan to have an impact, it needs to be backed by new budget commitments and robust legislation. 

    We are pleased the government is proposing a dedicated institution and an independent advisory body. Both were key elements to successful fair transitions in other jurisdictions. It is also encouraging for the plan to explicitly mention unions, workers’ rights, Indigenous rights, equity, and social dialogue.

    For this plan to be credible, it must be backed by new commitments in Budget 2023, at a much larger scale than what is currently offered. The government needs to allocate $15 billion a year for economic diversification for communities currently reliant on high-carbon industries, and for transition support such as training, income bridging, and early retirement programs.

    This plan must also be followed by legislation that includes regional and sector planning mechanisms so workers, employers and communities have certainty about how Canada will manage the energy transition and ensure that it is a fair transition that recognizes regional needs and differences.

    We are also concerned by the plan’s focus on false solutions to the climate crisis – such as carbon capture for fossil fuel production and fossil hydrogen – as a source of future jobs and income. A ‘sustainable jobs’ plan based on these unproven technologies could leave workers stranded in a high-carbon past while the rest of the world has moved on.

    ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.

    -30-

    For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

    Alex Ross, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca 

    The post Statement from Alienor Rougeot, Environmental Defence Climate and Energy Program Manager on the Sustainable Jobs Action Plan by the Government of Canada appeared first on Environmental Defence.

    This post was originally published on Environmental Defence.