
Climate-Friendly Homes - Support Sierra Club Prairie and Increase the Energy Efficiency of your Home!
Thinking of ways to make your home more energy efficient? ecoEquity in cooperation with National Resource Canada have developed a new green lease finance program that will provide you with 100% of the money you need to retrofit your home and allow you to qualify for up to $5,000 in government grants and $1,350 in personal tax rebates. Click here to Learn More!
For
immediate release
It's official: Syncrude is a tar sands criminal
By Mike Hudema and Sheila Muxlow | June 30, 2010
After a two-and-a-half-month trial, tar sands oil giant Syncrude has been found guilty of the criminal charges laid in connection with the deaths of 1,606 ducks that in one of its mining tailings lakes in April 2008. Syncrude was charged under the Alberta Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and the Federal Migratory Birds Convention Act with failing to undertake due diligence to ensure its toxic tailings do not cause harm to migratory birds.
The ducks are just one page of the tar sands horror story but the trial has been very revealing about the nature of tar sands operations. Nevertheless, while the verdict is in and sentencing is still to come, justice is still a long way from being served.
Read the article on Rabble.ca here...
Tar Sands Giant Total stonewalls public inquiry into Tar Sands plans OTTAWA – One week after French tar sands giant Total blocked local residents from testifying at a tar sands upgrader hearing northeast of Edmonton, the corporation is now trying to limit what questions third party intervenors can ask with regards to their plans for a new tar sands mine.
"Where does a tar sands giant like Total find the audacity to try to limit the questions of an independent intervenor? Total has no right to tell an intervenor what questions they can or can’t ask or to interfere in a public hearing process,” asserted Sheila Muxlow, Interim Director with Sierra Club Prairie. "This demonstrates that Total’s ‘good neighbour rhetoric ends right at their billboards. We say to Total: Just answer the questions." Read More...
RePower Alberta launches its call to build a green energy economy for Alberta. Sierra Club Prairie and Greenpeace Canada are touring across Alberta, bringing together leaders in various sectors of the green jobs economy to talk about the growing economic and community benefits of moving to a green econmy. Check out the tour dates and see how you can get involved, including bringing RePower Alberta to your community at www.REPOWERALBERTA.ca
Watch this Alberta Primetime Episode, where Sheila Muxlow of Sierra Club Prairie speaks about the health and environmental problems associated with Total's proposed upgrader in the Alberta Heartland. Muxlow discusses green alternatives by building a manufacturing industry that will diversify our economy in a clean and sustainable way.
The
Sierra Club Prairie has obtained a leaked copy of the most recent
Alberta Wetlands Policy that shows the extent of industry influence
over environmental decisions for the province.
WETLANDS CONSENSUS POLICY GUTTED AFTER
BACKROOM INDUSTRY PRESSURE
Alberta does not have
a wetlands policy to protect Wetlands in the tar sands region. Since
2003, the public of Alberta has been engaged on developing a policy
to address this gap and finally after years of deliberation, and public
consultation, the Alberta Water Council put forward a proposed policy
to the AB Government.
To obtain consensus with 25 different sector representatives as diverse
as agriculture, and forestry, to petro-chemical and environmental
conservation, the policy involved compromise. In short, destruction
of wetlands is allowed with the demand that companies who destroy
wetlands pay to replace the wetlands to an equal or higher quality
– promoting what is known as a ‘No-Net-Loss’ Principle.
Read the Press Release and TAKE
ACTION...
DOWNLOAD THE DRAFT WETLANDS POLICY HERE
Greening
the Mackenzie Gas Pipeline: Is the National Energy Board serious about
sustainability?
Yellowknife, April 12th, 2010 —
The National Energy Board has an opportunity to get serious about
sustainability of ecosystems and communities in the Mackenzie Valley
as it considers a possible licence for the Mackenzie Gas Project in
hearings this week, says Sierra Club Prairie.
“We are disappointed that sustainability considerations are
absent in the NEB’s proposed licence conditions for the Mackenzie
Gas Project, despite that fact that the NEB’s chair has recently
stated that sustainability is a focus for the Board.” said Sheila
Muxlow, acting director of Sierra Club Prairie.
This is the last of the National Energy Board hearings before decisions
are made about this proposed Arctic gas pipeline. Read
the full release...

Will
Alberta's new water law leave you high and dry?
It just
might unless you ACT NOW and demand the Government of Alberta protect
our water for Alberta families, for future generations and for the
land. The
week of March 22nd is World Water Week
and is an excellent time to raise the public discourse about concerns
for water rights and opposition to water markets! Come out or do your
own action in support of water! Click
here for a listing of events...
The Sierra Club Prairie has launched the got
thirst? campaign in response
to an announcement by Minister of the Environment Rob Renner in September
2008, for a re-examination of Alberta's water allocation system.The
Alberta Government is reviewing water allocation for the province
and pursuing the path of using water markets, essentially leaning
towards allocating water on an ability to pay principle. This move
will threaten water security for our ecosystem health, for food production,
for municipalities, and for YOU! A fully deregulated market will give
water to the highest bidder - which could leave the majority of us
high and dry!
See
here for more info and to take action!
Sierra
Club Canada launched its Action
H2O campaign. The multiyear initiative aims to encourage
communities across Canada to reduce their respective water footprints
through a focused outreach and engagement campaign. Check
it out...
Green
Jobs Groundbreaking report available
[2009] Commissioned by Greenpeace, Sierra Club Prairie Chapter and
the Alberta Federation of Labour, the report Green
Jobs: It's Time to Build Alberta's Future outlines
how a green economy should look like.
As mentioned in the report, "Alberta can start right now, putting
tens of thousands of Albertans back to work, building a cleaner, greener
economy" (page 4). For an overview, see the backgrounder
document.
Green
Jobs Full Report...
press
release and media
advisory
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