[LookOutSugarLake] Alarm bell on plans to gut Navigable Waters Protection Act

[Huguette OkShuswapGreens]

I received this yesterday and thought it was relevant to what we are  
trying to do.

Seems like not only is the BC government "resort - ing to madness" by  
making it easy for resorts to ignore regulations but now the federal  
government wants to do the same. I have discussed the problems we are  
facing here with Elizabeth and she assures me that one of the most  
effective tools we have is to strengthen community plans. She says  
below that "community interest and environmental impact should always  
be primary considerations, not the interests of developer".  This is  
something we can use as support for what we are doing,


Huguette Allen

>
> Media Release
> For Immediate Release
> June 10, 2008
>
> Green Party sounds alarm bell on plans to gut Navigable Waters  
> Protection Act
>
> OTTAWA – The Green Party of Canada is denouncing the Conservative  
> government’s plans to weaken the critical Navigable Waters  
> Protection Act (NWPA). For several months, the House Committee on  
> Transport, Infrastructure and Communities has been quietly studying  
> the proposed changes without notifying most environmental, paddling,  
> recreation and sporting groups or soliciting public consultation.
>
> “As one of the oldest pieces of federal legislation, the Navigable  
> Waters Protection Act ensures Canadians have the right to use and  
> enjoy public waterways,” said Green Party leader Elizabeth May. “It  
> is also one of the few tools we have to protect the delicate  
> ecosystems of these bodies of water. The proposed changes would gut  
> the Act and threaten Canada’s waterways by exempting certain major  
> waterway developments from the approval process, meaning an  
> environmental assessment would no longer be required. This effort  
> has nothing to do with modernizing the Act and everything to do with  
> facilitating projects that may harm waterways.”
>
> The proposed changes include amending the definition of “navigable  
> waters” to exclude minor waters from the Act, excluding so-called  
> minor development projects and exempting bridges, dams, causeways,  
> and booms from those developments requiring approval under theAct.
>
> “The NWPA exists to protect the rights of those who use waterways  
> for recreation,” said Environment critic and Guelph by-election  
> candidate Mike Nagy. “By changing the definition of ‘navigable  
> waters’, the government would no longer be required to consider  
> communities that make use of more minor waterways when considering  
> development, nor would environmental impact be taken into account.  
> The changes will adversely affect recreational paddlers, rafters and  
> canoeists across the country and could cause irreversible damage to  
> ecosystems. It could mean an end to family canoe trips down  
> favourite rivers. Having access to paddle our waterways is a part of  
> our natural and cultural heritage.”
>
> “Community interest and environmental impact should always primary  
> considerations –  not the interests of developers,” said Ms. May.  
> “The Harper government’s willingness to rewrite the NWPA as industry  
> lobbyists see fit is deeply troubling. The Green Party is calling on  
> opposition MPs to ensure the proposed amendments do not pass and  
> denounces the lack of public involvement in this move to  
> significantly alter key legislation.”
>
> -30-
>
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