BC Greens hold balance - KM pipeline & LNG pivotal issues

BC Greens hold balance - KM pipeline & LNG pivotal issues

Postby Oscar » Fri May 12, 2017 8:44 am

Kinder Morgan pipeline & LNG industry pivotal issues as Greens hold balance of power in B.C.

[ https://canadians.org/blog/kinder-morga ... e-power-bc ]

May 10, 2017 - 7:12 am

Environmental activist David Suzuki endorsed the B.C. Green Party during this provincial election. Andrew Weaver, the former climate scientist who leads the Green Party, could be instrumental in determining the next provincial government.

The outcome of last night's election in British Columbia is uncertain. The final results may not be finalized until May 24. Two likely scenarios though include an NDP-Green coalition government or a Liberal minority government backed by the Greens. In either situation, the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain tar sands pipeline and the liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector face new challenges.

The headlines tell the story of uncertainty:

Vancouver Sun - Christy Clark to try to govern with minority - May 10, 2017
[ http://vancouversun.com/news/politics/b ... trickle-in ]

CTV - Greens hold power balance in minority - May 10, 2017
[ http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/after-ra ... -1.3406476 ]

CBC - B.C. Liberals hang on to win minority government - May 10, 2017
[ http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-c ... -1.4107582 ]

The Globe and Mail - BC Liberals cut to minority with Greens holding balance of power - May 10, 2017
[ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/bri ... e34942628/ ]

The Canadian Press reports, "Christy Clark's Liberals won 43 seats, the NDP under John Horgan got 41 and the Greens led by Andrew Weaver achieved a major breakthrough by picking up three seats. The NDP won one riding [Courtenay-Comox] by only nine votes, making a recount a certainty that will determine the difference between a minority and an ultra-thin majority if it were to flip to the Liberals."

The Vancouver Sun adds, "Many of the ridings could face shifting outcomes as absentee ballots, and advanced ballots cast outside a person’s riding, are counted during Elections B.C.’s final count process, which begins May 22 and runs to May 24."

With respect to the popular vote, the Liberals were at 40.84 per cent, the NDP at 39.86, and the Green Party at 16.75 per cent.

Prior to last night's election (and the addition of two new seats to the Legislature), the seat count was Liberals 47 seats (meaning they are now down 4 seats), NDP 35 seats (they gained 6 seats), and 3 Independents, including Green party leader Weaver (meaning the Greens gained 2 seats).

CBC explains there are at least two different scenarios that could emerge in a minority government situation: "The first ... involves one party fully in control of cabinet and the executive branch of government, but regularly negotiating with other parties in order to get enough votes to pass legislation. The second approach is a coalition government where a formal agreement is made between multiple parties, usually involving the sharing of cabinet posts, along with guarantees on certain pieces of legislation and how decisions will be made. Much would depend on who the Green Party would pledge to support and under what conditions it would be offered."

It's unclear which party the Greens will support.

The Globe and Mail reports, "Mr. Weaver twice voted in favour of Liberal budgets. But on other issues, particularly around resource development and climate action, Mr. Weaver has been an outspoken critic of the Liberals. He has denounced the government’s pursuit of a liquefied natural gas sector, for example, and is opposed to the Kinder Morgan pipeline. Both the Greens and the NDP have committed to a new relationship with B.C.’s indigenous people that conflicts with the Liberals."

That article adds, "[Weaver] told the crowd the party's first priority is banning corporate and union donations, later telling reporters he expects the legislature to introduce a measure banning big money as soon as it sits. Asked about other barriers toward cooperating with the Liberals or NDP, he said supporting LNG is a nonstarter."

With both the LNG industry and the Kinder Morgan pipeline key aspects of the Liberal platform, it's difficult to imagine Green Party cooperation with the Liberals on those two issues.

During this provincial election, five Council of Canadians chapters - Comox Valley, Chilliwack, Williams Lake, Cowichan Valley, Delta-Richmond - held events with all candidates. The Vancouver-Burnaby chapter distributed 1100 leaflets on key election issues and the Victoria chapter endorsed the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs' 'Vote Anyone But Clark' online campaign. Furthermore, Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow did a five community speaking tour that highlighted water protection issues that reached 1140 people, and Vancouver-based water campaigner Emma Lui developed a social media campaign with infographics opposed to fracking.

#bcelxn17


Brent Patterson's blog
Political Director of the Council of Canadians
[ https://canadians.org/blogs/brent-patterson ]
Oscar
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Re: BC Greens hold balance - KM pipeline & LNG pivotal issue

Postby Oscar » Sat May 13, 2017 2:56 pm

The Council of Canadians calls on Andrew Weaver to work with the NDP to stop Kinder Morgan

[ https://canadians.org/blog/council-cana ... der-morgan ]

May 13, 2017 - 3:39 pm

The Council of Canadians is calling on the British Columbia Green Party leader Andrew Weaver to cooperate with the B.C. NDP to stop Liberal Premier Christy Clark's water-intensive, environmentally-destructive extreme energy projects.

Her extreme energy agenda includes the 890,000 barrel per day Trans Mountain pipeline (that would produce 20 to 26 million tonnes of upstream greenhouse emissions a year), proposed liquefied natural gas projects like the Pacific NorthWest LNG terminal (that would produce 11.8 to 14 million tonnes of emissions a year), and the Site C hydroelectric dam (that would produce 150,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year).

While the final results will not be confirmed until May 24, at this point it would appear the Liberals won 43 seats, John Horgan's NDP won 41 seats, and Weaver's Green Party won 3 seats in the May 9 provincial election.

The Globe and Mail now reports, "Weaver has laid out three priorities he needs fulfilled before he will support either the Liberals or NDP after British Columbians appeared to elect a minority government this week."

Those three priorities are:

1- campaign finance reform and a ban on union and corporate donations
2- a commitment to a proportional representation electoral system
3- official party status for the Greens (the rules say 4 seats are required, the Greens have 3 seats).

And yesterday Weaver commented, "I’m going to be hiring a chief of staff very soon and the first order of business will be for them to bring a team together to start discussions with both the BC NDP and the BC Liberals to see where we can move forward together. ...We haven’t discussed coalition or minority. I suspect we’re probably not going to lean towards coalition. For us it’s important to have our party status, to be there representing British Columbians as BC Greens. We want to ensure good public policy is put forward, but again, everything’s on the table.”

While the Green Party has twice voted in support of Liberal budgets, Weaver has also denounced Clark's agenda to develop the LNG sector and her approval of the Kinder Morgan pipeline. He has also described the Site C dam as "fiscally foolish, socially irresponsible and environmentally unsound".

That said, Toronto Star columnist Thomas Walkom has commented, "For the Greens, this election wasn’t a referendum on pipelines. The NDP did promise to use every available legal remedy to stop the expansion of the Kinder Morgan heavy-oil pipeline from Alberta to Greater Vancouver. But while Weaver remains a vocal critic of Kinder Morgan, the word 'pipeline' does not appear in his party’s platform."

To call on Weaver and Horgan to cooperate in the public interest by stopping Clark's extreme energy agenda, please click here:
[ https://secure.canadians.org/ea-action/ ... n.id=70001 ]

The Council of Canadians is a non-partisan organization that endorses no political party, but rather is committed to building a peoples' movement capable of holding any government accountable to the public interest.

#bcelxn17

Brent Patterson's blog
Political Director of the Council of Canadians
[ https://canadians.org/blogs/brent-patterson ]
Oscar
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Re: BC Greens hold balance - KM pipeline & LNG pivotal issue

Postby Oscar » Sat May 13, 2017 3:18 pm

SEND YOUR LETTER TODAY!!! NDP & Greens can stop the extreme energy agenda in B.C.

[ https://secure.canadians.org/ea-action/ ... n.id=70001 ]

May 9, 2017

Last night’s election was a tight race that ended with the the NDP coming in a close second to the Liberals and the Green Party holding the balance of power. Absentee ballots and recounting could still change this outcome in the coming weeks.

While that result is still uncertain, it is clear that Christy Clark’s Liberals don’t share the position of the majority of B.C. voters, and the Council of Canadians, against extreme energy.

Please write to the NDP and Green Party leaders and urge them to unite against extreme energy:
[ https://secure.canadians.org/ea-action/ ... n.id=70001 ]


NDP and Green Party voters have clearly expressed opposition to Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline, Site C and the expansion of the LNG and fracking industry. They want B.C. to embark on a just energy transition process and ensure Indigenous rights are respected.

A shift to a renewables needs to happen now.

The NDP and Green Party earned about 57% of the popular vote to the Liberals’ 41%, giving them the legitimacy needed to move forward and collaborate on the crucial issues they’ve been advocating for.

Call on the NDP and Green Party leaders to join forces and end the Liberal agenda of extreme energy.

Regardless of which party is in power, the role of the Council of Canadians – alongside its chapters and supporters – will continue to be crucial. We have an ongoing responsibility to organize in our communities to build a better future, to protect water, and to hold politicians accountable.

= = = = =

LETTER (Make your letter count! Please add your own words and describe why this is important to you.)


Dear NDP Party Leader John Horgan and Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver,

Yesterday’s election represented a win for both the NDP and the Green Party. Assuming the results hold, it is imperative that you follow through on issues they were elected to fight for.

With over 56% of the popular vote, you have an opportunity to join forces and follow through on crucial issues that would end the Liberal’s agenda of extreme energy.

NDP and Green Party voters have clearly expressed opposition to Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline, Site C and the expansion of the LNG and fracking industry. They want B.C. to embark on a just energy transition process and ensure Indigenous rights are respected.

The time for action and collaboration is now. Working together to address these pressing issues would be an earnest step in that direction.

These issues are extremely important and I will continue to fight for them. I hope you will join me.

Message:
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