The next iteration of the Canada Climate Action consultations in Ottawa will be held in the federal riding of Vanier on 11 July. There, Councillor Fleury, Nussbaum and Tierney will meet with constituents to hear their thoughts on climate change and how we as a country can best ameliorate the effects thereof. It will be held at 6 PM – 7:30 PM at the Richelieu-Vanier Community Centre, 300 Des Pères-Blancs in Vanier. Ecology Ottawa will host a pre-meeting gathering at 5 PM in the same location for attendees to meet and go over key climate issues and talking points; all are welcome to attend. Much like the many consultations held across Ottawa in recent weeks with MPs McKenna, McGuinty, Vandenbeld, McCrimmon, and Arya this is an historic opportunity for people to tell their elected representatives that climate change must be taken seriously.
We must seize this opportunity to tell our elected representative in the House of Commons that climate change needs to be taken seriously and that the government has an important role to play in moving toward a sustainable economy and greener cities. One of the major issues facing Ottawa today when it comes to environmental security and sustainability is the proposed Energy East pipeline. TransCanada submitted the application for this pipeline to the National Energy Board just weeks ago. While the review process moves forward we must ensure that our MP’s and the Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna, know that Ottawans do not want a bitumen pipeline running through their backyard community.
When you’re at the town hall, keep a few things in mind and be sure to highlight important points. Overall, make sure to tell your story and be heard. There are five topics that the MP wants to discuss at this consultation.
- How and where to reduce emissions.
- Canada can do that by not building new fossil fuel infrastructure like the proposed Energy East pipeline, and instead investing in renewable energy.
- Ideas for new technology and job creation.
- The federal government can maximize opportunities in the clean energy economy by phasing out fossil fuels and making investments in new clean, local energy initiatives – like the Ottawa Renewable Energy Co-op, CanSIA and CanWEA, The Canada Green Building Council, The EnviroCentre and others.
- How to put a price on carbon.
- A minimum carbon price can apply to all polluting sectors in all provinces across Canada. This price should be high enough to reflect the true costs of energy projects.
- Preparing for the impacts of climate change.
- Ottawa has already experienced many impacts of climate change (sporadic weather; introduction of invasive species like the Emerald Ash Borer; extreme weather events like the ice storm of 1998; etc) and we need a plan to deal with them.
- General ideas on climate change reduction
- Reject all new proposed pipelines in Canada, including the proposed Energy East pipeline which will run through Ottawa.
A more in-depth list of climate issues and concerns that could be brought up at this consultation is available online for your perusal.
Events like these, especially when scheduled on such short notice, require a lot of staffing power and resources. If you are unable to make it to this consultation but would like to help make events like these possible, please donate to Ecology Ottawa today so we can continue the fight to make Ottawa the green capital of Canada. Also, ‘like’ us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more updates about this ongoing consultation process in Ottawa.
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