News Releases

Canada about to license another bee-killing pesticide
Thursday, October 30, 2014 - 20:44

OTTAWA – Environmental organizations are calling on Health Canada to stop approving systemic pesticides that are toxic to bees and threaten to interfere with ecosystem functioning. The most widely used group of systemic pesticides, neonicotinoids, has come under increased scrutiny as a contributing factor in large-scale bee die-offs and other harmful effects. Now Health Canada is proposing to approve a new systemic pesticide, flupyradifurone. According to the government assessment, flupyradifurone may pose a risk to bees, non-target beneficial arthropods, and freshwater and saltwater invertebrates when used for foliar application. Flupyradifurone may pose a risk to birds and small wild mammals when used for soybean seed treatment.

“Health Canada has admitted the use...

Ontario must ban neonic pesticides in light of new study
Tuesday, October 21, 2014 - 07:10

MEDIA RELEASE
October 21, 2014

OTTAWA – Sierra Club Canada Foundation is calling on Ontario Agriculture Minister Jeff Leal to immediately ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides on soybeans in light of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study that concludes the bee killing pesticides provide little or no benefit to soybean growers.

“EPA concludes that these seed treatments provide little or no overall benefits to soybean production in most situations. Published data indicate that in most cases there is no difference in soybean yield when soybean seed was treated with neonicotinoids versus not receiving...
Support First Nations, not corporate oil interests
Monday, October 13, 2014 - 18:49

MEDIA RELEASE
October 14, 2014

K’JIPUKTUK (Halifax NS) - Save Our Seas and Shores Coalition is calling on the Canada Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) to stop issuing license extensions (free or otherwise) to Corridor Resources for EL-1105 at Old Harry in the Gulf of St Lawrence.

Following up on the announcement made by the Innu, Maliseet and Mi’gmaq Alliance in Halifax last July, wherein First Nations called for a 12-year moratorium on offshore oil and gas development in the Gulf of St Lawrence, representatives from SOSS-NS, NB, PEI, QC and NL are meeting in Halifax this week to announce their support for the Alliance’s demand...

Treading Water on Climate Change
Tuesday, October 7, 2014 - 10:08

MEDIA RELEASE 
October 7, 2014 

OTTAWA – The Environment Commissioner’s audit documents Canada’s lack of action on climate change, preventing pollution from the Tar Sands and lack of preparation for increasing shipping in the Arctic.

“Canada is treading water on climate change, Tar Sands pollution and arctic shipping,” said Sierra Club’s John Bennett. “We need legislation, regulation and enforcement.”

The Environment Commissioner found Environment Canada is doing...

Religious and Indigenous Leaders: Canada, United States need to modernize Columbia River Treaty
Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - 11:27

MEDIA RELEASE
September 23, 2014

Today religious and indigenous leaders urged President Obama and Prime Minister Harper to start negotiations to modernize the Columbia River Treaty. Both nations need to work together to right historic wrongs and promote water stewardship in the face of climate change. The letter, signed by 14 religious leaders and 7 indigenous leaders representing nearly all Tribes and First Nations in the Columbia Basin, transmitted a Declaration on Ethics and modernizing the Columbia River Treaty as a foundation for international negotiations.

"The Declaration speaks very clearly of how important and critical it is for...

Response to federal announcement on vehicle emissions regulations
Monday, September 22, 2014 - 13:33

"Copycat regs that don't kick in for a decade is just more baffle gab from a do-nothing government," said John Bennett, National Program Director, Sierra Club Canada Foundation.

"Now, if Canada actually had regulations like what's coming in in the United States that would be great, and we'd say that," said Mr. Bennett. "But we don't actually have anything like that. We just have a fog machine of perpetual hollow announcements."

"If the federal government was serious about climate change they would be rolling out regulations for the oil and gas sector," concluded Mr. Bennett.

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For more information contact:

John Bennett, National Program Director
Sierra Club Canada...

#PeoplesClimateMarch
Friday, September 19, 2014 - 11:02

John Bennett, National Program Director, Sierra Club Canada Foundation, will be participating in the Peoples Climate March, Sunday, September 21st, in New York City.

Mr. Bennett stated he was going because: "I'm done waiting. 25 years of waiting is enough. We need action now!"

Mr. Bennett will be available to comment during and after the Peoples Climate March at: 613.291.6888

You can follow John on Twitter at: @John__Bennett

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For more information:

John Bennett, National...

Canadians outraged by Natural Resources Minister
Thursday, September 18, 2014 - 12:56

OTTAWA – Sierra Club Canada Foundation supporters were disturbed to discover Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford is so uninterested he has shut down his Parliamentary email (greg.rickford@parl.gc.ca).

Sierra Club Canada Foundation initiated an email campaign in response to learning Mr. Rickford's briefing binder instructed him to push for expanding Canada’s oil industry and ignored climate change. In 2005, Natural Resources Canada was responsible for administering numerous climate change programs designed to assist Canadians in living up to our Kyoto Protocol commitments.

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Unicycling for Climate Change
Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - 18:59

OTTAWA – This Monday, September 15, 2014, Joseph Boutilier, a 24-year-old from Victoria B.C., will be completing his five-month long cross-country unicycle ride to raise awareness about climate change in Canada.

Boutilier’s one-wheel ride (the “Unity for the Climate Tour”) began on April 5, 2014. So far, his unicycle tour has taken him through five provinces and three U.S. states.

His 5,000 km journey – aimed at making climate change a priority issue in the 2015 election -- will conclude at noon on Monday when Boutilier...

Sierra Club Celebrates Victory Against Fracking in Nova Scotia
Wednesday, September 3, 2014 - 14:41

Today, Nova Scotia’s Energy Minister Andrew Younger announced that his government will introduce legislation for a moratorium on fracking in the upcoming legislative session (see announcement here).

“This is a huge victory for citizens. The government has heard our call for real evidence of safety before proceeding with dangerous activities, like fracking,” said Gretchen Fitzgerald, Campaigns Director fro Sierra Club Canada Foundations’ Atlantic Canada Chapter.

In his announcement, Minister Younger stated that "Nova...

            

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