OTTAWA – In the House of Commons today, Green Party parliamentary leader Elizabeth May (MP, Saanich-Gulf Islands) tabled new legislation calling for a national strategy to address the harm caused by environmental racism.<\/p>
The bill received widespread support when it was first brought forward in the 43rd parliament by Lenore Zann, the former MP for Cumberland-Colchester. It died on the order paper when the writ dropped last August.<\/p>
If passed, the bill will require Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault to work with interested groups and individuals to develop a national strategy to assess, prevent and address environmental racism and advance environmental justice.<\/p>
“The beginning of Black History Month is a fitting time to confront the shameful reality that across this country a disproportionate number of people exposed to toxic pollution or other environmental hazards are members of an Indigenous, racialized or other marginalized community,” said Ms. May. <\/p>
She said that the bill tabled today – the National Strategy Respecting Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act – will require the government to identify and rectify incidents of environmental racism across Canada, something the US Environmental Protection Agency has been doing in that country for decades.<\/p>
“As in the US, the impact of pollution, toxic contamination, bad air quality and proximity to toxic waste in Canada is far more dangerous for marginalized, racialized, low-income communities than for settler culture Canadians,” said Ms. May. <\/p>
“We don’t need to look hard for examples: witness the long and troubled history of the Sydney Tar Ponds and Boat Harbour in Nova Scotia; the ongoing scandals in Grassy Narrows and Aamjiwnaang First Nations in Ontario; Kanesatake First Nation in Quebec; Shamattawa First Nation in Manitoba; the oil sands in Alberta and multiple sites across the prairies and into British Columbia, including violations of Indigenous territories for pipeline projects.<\/p>
“We need to act now to confront the implicit racism of pollution and abuse of nature."<\/p>
Green Party interim Leader Amita Kuttner said: “The climate crisis, environmental degradation and social justice issues have the same root cause. We must address colonialism and white supremacy as part of the systemic transformation needed to preserve a liveable world.”<\/p>
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