Canada's biggest parties and their goals for the environment

.. if they get elected that is. CPAWS together with a bunch of other environmental organisations went to ask the 5 major parties to answer a few questions about greenhouse gas emissions, protecting public water sources, public transit, oil sands, chemicals in every day products and more. Follow the link to read the answers. Guess what, the blue party (Conservatives, for all Non- Canadians) did not reply at all! Do I dare to say it?: Don't you dare voting for them! 

Rick Mercer on Bill C-311

You know I don't watch TV but thanks to David Suzuki Foundation I came across Rick Mercer ranting and raving about the killing of the Climate Change Accountability Act. Well done!      

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV8zEjgZ8VE

Where to start?

I wanted to start this blog with my pet peeve the Alberta oil sands but currently there is two other things that keep the media and my mind busy. Alberta is "reviewing" its Parks Act and introduced Bill 29 as the potential law-to-be. This bill does NOT state the conservation and preservation of Alberta's parks (provincial park, areas of ecological importance, wilderness areas) as the prime purpose of the Act. In fact, it wants to give one minister the power to decide on any development in any of the current parks, such as tourism infrastructure. Even though I used to work in the tourist industry I still consider the protection of nature as far more important than the tourist industry. It would probably not stop there anyway. Next thing is big industry moves into those fragile areas for mining or drilling.


The other even more annoying issue is the downturn of Bill C-311, the Climate Change Accountability Act, by the Senate. After this bill has been a proposal only for far too long Senate voted on it without any discussion or any notice of the upcoming vote, practically ensuring that the people in favour of the bill - everybody but the Conservatives - is not present. Very democratic indeed. That's betrayal of the Canadian people, too. I bet Mr Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, was  well aware of what was going to happen. It's obvious that this government avoids being held responsible for the environmental damage their actions cause. A very impolite way of chickening out of a major problem that effects the whole world. Unsurprisingly, this downturn leaves the Harper government once more in a bad light. At the upcoming summit on climate change in Mexico Canada will proudly appear as the world leader in increasing greenhouse gas emissions, Canada against the rest of the world! I wonder what Mr Harper's excuse is for the failure of the Climate Change Accountability Act.     
  
I have written my letter to Ed Stelmach, Premier of Alberta last Friday and my goal for today is to write one to Mr Harper.