Elizabeth May: Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member for Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette that, as leader of the Green Party, I pay a lot of attention to measurable actions of the party that he represents. Those measurable actions include recklessly ignoring the worsening state of the Great Lakes; failing to appoint a commissioner to the International Joint Commission, which the Conservatives have left vacant for almost a year; the abdication of responsibility by cancelling science across this country: closing the Experimental Lakes Area; shutting down the Polar Environmental Atmospheric Research labs; cancelling all research into climate science; and pretending, by throwing money at Lake Simcoe, that they are somehow dealing with water quality.
This is a big country and the reality of what the current government has done is an appalling assault of negative action for protecting our wilderness and the air and water that we need to live.
Pierre-Luc Dusseault: Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to ask the Green Party leader a question about the Conservative Party’s intentions regarding the changes to the Navigable Waters Protection Act in Bill C-45.
Can she tell us what she thinks is behind those changes? Personally, I think those changes are meant to speed up the pipeline approval process and ensure that there is no legislation standing in the way of that development.
Elizabeth May: Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the question.
In my view, the motivation behind the huge changes to the Navigable Waters Protection Act is to eliminate the protection of most of Canada’s lakes, rivers and waterways. It is not meant only for pipelines, because before Bill C-38 was passed, developers had to obtain a permit issued by Transport Canada for any pipelines that went through navigable waters. Since Bill C-38 was passed, pipelines are no longer included in the groups known as works and undertakings.
Pipelines were specifically excluded in Bill C-38.
The decision in Bill C-45 to reduce the protection of navigable waters has to do with mines, dams and all other aspects that present a danger to Canada’s waterways.
Good Sunday Morning – January 24
January 24th, 2021
Good Sunday Morning – January 10
January 10th, 2021
Good Sunday Morning – Jan 3
January 3rd, 2021
Good Sunday Morning – December 13
December 13th, 2020
Good Sunday Morning – December 6
December 6th, 2020
Good Sunday Morning – November 29
November 29th, 2020
Green Party calls on government to declare housing and homelessness national crises, clamp down on commodification of housing market
February 10th, 2021
Greens raising alarm on rapid erosion of public transportation across Canada
January 25th, 2021
Green Party urges focus and collaboration as MPs return to Parliament
January 24th, 2021
Greens join in multi-party press conference to mark the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons coming into force
January 21st, 2021
Green MPs Elizabeth May and Jenica Atwin recognized in Maclean’s 12th annual Parliamentarians of the Year awards
January 13th, 2021
Green Party condemns steady erosion of civil liberties in Hong Kong
January 6th, 2021
‘Twas just weeks before Christmas…
December 9th, 2020
Elizabeth asks Environment Minister to close Basel Convention loophole
December 9th, 2020
Elizabeth’s statement on the 50th anniversary of the Royal Commission on the Status of Women
December 7th, 2020
Green Caucus letter to Mins. Bains and O’Regan re: Small Modular Reactors
November 9th, 2020
Green Caucus stands in solidarity with pro-democracy protests in Bulgaria
September 14th, 2020
Constituency Office
1-9711 Fourth St
Sidney, BC V8L 2Y8
Phone: 250-657-2000
800-667-9188
Fax: 250-657-2004
E-mail: elizabeth.may.c1a@parl.gc.ca
Parliament Hill Office
518 Confederation Building
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Phone: 613-996-1119
Fax: 613-996-0850
E-mail: elizabeth.may@parl.gc.ca
Jobs & Volunteering
Click here for the latest opportunities