Nine members of the Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL) Canada joined the Climate Action Network (CAN/RAC) in Ottawa on November 6 to 8, 2012 to meet with more than 25 Members of Parliament and Senators to urge action on climate change.
Two Conservatives MPs agreed to meet with the climate-focused lobbyists. CCL and CAN/RAC advocated for a comprehensive climate change plan and an end to tax breaks and hand-outs to the oil industry. Lobbyists also proposed to them that Canada invest in power storage through incentives, as well as energy efficiency for low-income households.
Liberal MPs were urged to adopt a ‘principled’ position on climate change while choosing a new leader, to resist tar sands expansion and to push for a national energy strategy.
NDP MPs were also urged to adopt a more critical stance on the east tar sands pipelines, rather than simply criticize the federal government for not regulating them better. The stakes are high. CAN/RAC research shows that the pipelines are old and risky, that the purpose of reversing Line 9 is to create a conduit for export not service to Eastern Canada and that the proposed path endangers the primary water supply for Ontario residents.
CCL members also met with Senators Neufeld and Mitchell, Chair and Deputy Chair of the Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources. CCL presented Senator Neufeld with peer-reviewed research, by Dr. Mark Z. Jacobson and Dr. Mark A. Delucchi, on the feasibility of powering the world exclusively using wind, solar and water energy by 2030. The same research was presented to Senator Art Eggleton, Deputy Chair of the Committee on Social Issues, Science and Technology.
By Laurel Thompson, CCL Montreal
