[British Columnbia] Clark needs to step up on environment – by Stephen Hume (Vancouver Sun – November 25, 2015)

http://www.vancouversun.com/

Wednesday’s agreement between Premier Christy Clark and Alaska Gov. Bill Walker promising protection for shared environments from new mining developments on trans-boundary salmon rivers won’t quell the grassroots opposition swelling in the Northern U.S. state.

In fact, it might even make things more difficult for B.C.’s ambitious northwest development plans. Alaskan First Nations, fishing and environmental groups are already signalling a desire to trigger U.S. federal intervention through the International Joint Commission under the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty.

What happened to the Northern Gateway and Keystone XL pipelines — once promoted as a sure thing to carry Alberta’s oilsands crude to tidewater — might serve as a cautionary examples.

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David Suzuki compares oilsands defenders to slave traders: ‘It’s a moral issue’ – by Douglas Quan (National Post – November 25, 2015)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

David Suzuki says he wasn’t necessarily taking aim at all people working in the energy sector when he compared the oilsands industry to the American slave trade.

In a radio interview on Monday, the environmental activist suggested that those who argue efforts to reduce greenhouse gases must consider economic impacts do not sound all that different from slave owners from the 19th century.

Several times, host Evan Solomon gave Suzuki an opportunity to clarify his statement — at one point asking him if he wanted to “put some nuance on that one,” especially given how many Canadians work in the industry.

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Posturing toward Paris with good hair – by Peter Foster (National Post – November 25, 2015)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

On Tuesday, Premier Kathleen Wynne declared that Ontario’s plans to combat climate change were “optimistic and entirely realistic.” Optimistic for sure. Realistic certainly not. The Green Energy Act has been a bummer, and closing down the entire province wouldn’t register as a blip on global climate.

Wynne confirmed the now almost universal objective of reducing emissions by 80 per cent by 2050, when Ontario pork will be flying direct to our plates.

Details of a five-year “action plan,” including Ontario’s cap and trade scheme, won’t be released until the new year, confirming that the vast Canadian delegation is going to Paris with nothing but good hair and a crazy quilt of dumb policies.

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