An open letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
British Columbia’s forests are burning up. We’re told that the lumber one purchases for construction now contains more moisture than the trees of BC’s forests.
Some of the hot, dry conditions are due to air temperatures in the Arctic warming twice as fast as the rest of the globe. As a result, the jet stream stalls, hot and dry areas stay that way, and the risk of forest fires increases.
Climate change is a huge threat to the future of the world’s children and future generations. It is imperative that governments take all possible action to help prevent the worst effects of climate change. Shifting Canada’s economy from one based on fossil fuels to one based on renewable energy is an urgent necessity.
Thus, I cannot understand why you are promoting and defending to the point of purchasing, the Kinder Morgan pipeline and funding its expansion at an estimated cost of $15 billion. This would mean a threefold expansion of the Alberta tarsands, the largest source of Canada’s carbon emissions.
How can expansion of the tarsands be in the interest of Canada? How can the expenditure of $15 billion of taxpayers’ dollars to fund fossil fuel expansion be in the interest of Canadians?
The years 2015, 2016, and 2017 have been the hottest on record according to the World Meteorological Organization, and it looks as though 2018 will be even hotter and drier.
I urge you, for the sake of Canada’s children and future generations, to withdraw your support and financial commitment from the Kinder Morgan pipeline, and invest the money in promoting and supporting efforts to end reliance on fossil fuels and shift Canada’s economy to one based on renewable energy. These steps would result in the creation of far more jobs than would building pipelines.
Anne Morris
