Blog posts

The Pembina Institute's PJ Partington gives us the highlights of the letter in defence of climate research from 255 members of the U.S. National Academy of Science. The letter was published in the May 7, 2010 issue of the journal Science. You can read the full text of the letter here.

Society has two choices: We can ignore the science and hide our heads in the sand and hope we are lucky, or we can act in the public interest to reduce the threat of global climate change quickly and substantively. The good news is that smart and effective actions are possible. But delay must not be an option.

With Bill C-311, the Climate Change Accountability Act, passing third reading in the House of Commons, AEN groups reacted to this historic event.

Matthew Bramley, Director of the Pembina Institute's Climate Change Program said:

By passing the Climate Change Accountability Act today, a majority of MPs have voted for strong, science-based action on climate change. This groundbreaking bill would set a target for Canada's 2050 emissions that lines up with our G8 commitments and with U.S. legislation, and would require the government to move immediately to put in place the policies needed to get on track towards that target.

And according to the Sierra Club's John Bennett:

The passing of the Climate Change Accountability Act is a huge victory for climate change policy in Canada. The environmental movement has supported this Bill from its inception as one of the strongest piece of climate change legislation in Canadian politics.

More reaction from AEN groups on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The Pembina Institute's Mike Kennedy writes about the economics of an oil spill on Pembina's Green Economics blog.

Link: The economics of an oil spill Read more about The economics of an oil spill

With the BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico dominating the environmental news, AEN member groups are weighing in on the spill and the potential implications on Canada and Alberta.

The Pembina Institute's Karen Campbell posts an op-ed on the implications of the spill on Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway pipeline. This pipeline is proposed to run from Edmonton to a new tanker terminal in Kitimat, B.C.; and will help bring the products of Alberta's oilsands industry to new markets.

Meanwhile, Sierra Club Canada has called for a moratorium on offshore oil drilling  in Canada.

The oil spill in the Gulf is a catastrophe,” said John Bennett, Executive Director of Sierra Club Canada.  “Canada should fully understand the causes of the explosion in the Gulf and the failure of the clean up before allowing any more drilling in Canadian waters. In the meantime a moratorium should be put in place.

Greenpeace Canada urges Canadians to email the Prime Minister and tell him:

…the threat of such a catastrophy [sic] in our waters is unacceptable. We must cut our addiction to oil and support renewable energy

  Read more about Gulf Oil Spill: AEN Groups Weigh In