Eddie Gardner President, Wild Salmon Defenders Alliance
From: Eddie Gardner [mailto:singingbear@telus.net]
Sent: Friday, September 23, 2016 10:31 AM
Subject: Letter of Solidarity with Musgamagw Dzawada’enuxw Eviction of Fish Farms
Hi All,
Your assistance in circulating this to the mass media would be greatly appreciated. We are encouraging others to send messages of support and solidarity with Musgamagw Dzawada’enuxw to Dominic LeBlanc as Chief Michelle Lee Edwards did.
One of B.C.'s most influential First Nations leaders will not be at a ceremony with Prince William to protest the way Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Christy Clark are dealing with indigenous issues.
Assembly of First Nations, Union of BC Indian Chiefs, NDP among opponents to B.C. dam project
The federal NDP is questioning Justin Trudeau's commitment to having a 'nation-to-nation' relationship with Indigenous people, claiming the Liberal party continues to dodge questions about the construction of the Site C dam near Fort St John.
The controversial hydroelectric project came up in Question Period numerous times this week, including an exchange between NDP leader Thomas Mulcair and the prime minister.
The federal government’s decision on expanding the TransMountain pipeline, expected no later than Dec. 19, will be an early Christmas present for an as yet unknown recipient.
As opponents hope for a resounding “no” on the $6.8-billion expansion project, all but a few of the communities along the pipeline route — from Strathcona County in Alberta to Burnaby, B.C. — have signed agreements ensuring they get more than a lump of coal if the project goes ahead, whether they endorse it, or not.
The BC Hydro Ratepayers Association has filed for a Judicial Review of a fisheries permit related to the controversial Site C dam, arguing that the impact of the megaproject on the environment and on First Nations rights was not adequately justified before the permit was granted.
The permit or “Authorization”, issued in late August by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, “authorizes BC Hydro to conduct specified works and activities likely to result in serious harm to fish.”
Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould should resign her post over the federal approval of permits for British Columbia’s Site C mega dam, says the chief of West Moberly First Nation, one of the Treaty 8 communities facing territorial destruction as a result of the project.
Enbridge says they will pursue re-engagement with directly affected First Nations communities along the proposed route of their Northern Gateway pipeline, a proposed project that would carry bitumen from Alberta through to Kitimat.
Northern Gateway announced today they would not appeal the Federal Court of Appeal’s decision to reverse the pipeline’s federal approval. The court cited a lack of meaningful consultation with impacted First Nations.
Chief Namoks of the Wet’suwet’en questions the move as just a PR strategy.
Sept 16, 2016 - Another U.S. scientific study has confirmed that methane emissions from oil and gas activity are increasing more rapidly than previously estimated, and that these increases were happening at the same time that the North American shale gas boom and related fracking frenzy took off.
Sept 16, 2016 - Solar power projects that could jolt Alberta's electricity grid with the addition of hundreds of megawatts of renewable power are being lined up in anticipation of incentives from the provincial NDP government.
According to the Alberta Electric System Operator, 21 proposed solar projects generating a total of 681 MW — about 60 times the existing provincial solar capacity — have been registered on its system access service request list as of Sept. 1.
Liberal MP Robert-Falcon Ouellette has broken ranks with his government's approval of a BC dam project, saying a failure to consult local First Nations could violate the UN declaration on indigenous rights.
