Author: CAM

OPEN LETTER TO MPP HON. GRAYDON SMITH

CAM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Re: December 9, 2022 visit to your Bracebridge constituency office

Hon. Graydon Smith,

Sir, do constituents have a legal right to congregate in front of and to visit your office, you being their elected MPP? Do they have the right to hand-deliver letters to you at your office? Is your current Bracebridge location an appropriate place for an office paid for by taxpayers?

Climate Action Muskoka (CAM), Almaguin Climate Action (ACA) and Climate Action Pary Sound (CAPS) are asking these questions of you our Parry Sound Muskoka MPP and Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry after being barred from your Bracebridge constituency office Friday, December 9 at 1:30pm. You knew we were coming because we had asked for a meeting with you at that time. You knew we wanted to express our opposition to Bill 23 and our deep concerns for its erosion of protected spaces, its attack on climate mitigation and its undemocratic provisions overstepping local governance.

When we arrived, your office was closed. Another building tenant physically blocked the stairway to your office. The building owner barred entry to the building telling your constituents to “get the hell out…get the hell off my property” and told us we were trespassing on private property and called the police.

As an elected official, it is incumbent upon you to locate your office in a place where you are accessible to your constituents.

Your constituents are upset and frustrated after this unsettling experience, especially in light of having received no responses to their many phone calls, emails, and letters to you. Your constituents travelled from the far reaches of the riding to deliver their messages. This is their democratic right. To be stonewalled and treated like a criminal is unacceptable in a democratic society. They deserve an apology.

As our elected representative you are obligated to be accessible to all your constituents, including those whose opinions you do not agree with. Please respond to climateactionmuskoka@gmail.com and climateactionparrysound@gmail.com

Regards,

Sue McKenzie, Gravenhurst
Len Ring, Gravenhurst
Linda Mathers, Port Carling
Christine Lauffer, Burk’s Falls
Al Bottomley, Sundridge
Tamsen Tillson, Bracebridge
Judy and Ken Christenson, Parry Sound
Merry Bridges, Parry Sound

On behalf of Climate Action Muskoka (CAM), Almaguin Climate Action (ACA), Climate Action Parry Sound (CAPS)

and the 100 constituents who visited your office on Friday, December 9, 2022

More pics of the “Travelling Climate Rally” – Here!
Links to Letters in our Local Media – Here

BILL 23 MUST GO.

CAM

MUSKOKA/ALMAGUIN: Climate Action Muskoka (CAM) and Almaguin Climate Action (ACA) have a message for Parry Sound Muskoka MPP Graydon Smith, Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry: BILL 23 MUST GO. The ‘More Homes Built Faster Act’ harms wetlands, harms forests and farmlands, harms affordable housing, harms local government and harms democracy.  

“We expect our elected MPP to protect our communities’ interests and to protect Ontario’s natural resources and forests,” says CAM spokesperson, Tamsen Tillson. “We are calling on him to do the right thing and fight like hell to get the bill rescinded.” 

CAM and ACA are bringing a collective message to MPP Smith next Friday, December 9 in a Travelling Climate Rally from parts north and south in the riding. Bill 23 must be repealed to protect the biosphere, to allow municipalities to take climate action, and to ensure that citizens have a say in the future of their communities. 

“Bill 23 represents a massive assault by the Ontario government on biosphere protections, Indigenous and Treaty rights, municipalities, public consultation rights, climate decision-making, and downloads private developers’ costs onto municipal taxpayers,” Sue McKenzie of CAM says. “We invite all concerned citizens and municipal representatives to join this event.” 

You can join all or part of the Travelling Climate Rally as we come together from Sundridge (Post Office 9:30am), Burk’s Falls (Post Office 10:15am), Huntsville (Town Hall 11:15am), continuing on to Bracebridge (Memorial Park 12:20pm), and finally walk to Smith’s Bracebridge constituency office (230 Manitoba Street). If you are coming from South Muskoka, meet at Gull Lake Park in Gravenhurst at 11:45pm to travel to Bracebridge to join the northern group there. Bring a sign and your personal written letter to our MPP. 

Members of the group will hand deliver our personal letters to Smith. Everyone is welcome to join the Rally at any point along the route.  If you cannot join the event, email your letter or give your letter to someone who can attend. 

The event is organized by Climate Action Muskoka (CAM) and Almaguin Climate Action (ACA) The two groups have requested a joint meeting with MPP Smith. #RepealBill23 For more information: climateactionmuskoka@gmail.com 

Climate Action Muskoka Raises The Alarm About Bill 23

CAM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Omnibus bill guts environmental protections province-wide

Muskoka, November 15, 2022 — Climate Action Muskoka has joined dozens of groups and municipalities across the province in raising the alarm about Ontario Bill 23, aka “More Homes Built Faster Act.” In an open letter to Muskoka’s Towns, Townships and District government and staff, CAM urges the municipal government and citizens across Muskoka to raise our collective voice in opposition.

The provincial government claims that Bill 23 was designed to address the housing crisis. But what Bill 23 actually does is open the door for developers to pave over wetlands, farmlands, forests and waterways that were previously protected.

It takes away the power of municipal governments—including those in Muskoka—to make planning decisions, reduces their autonomy and tax base, and silences conservation authorities and other environmental protection groups.

This bill exacerbates sprawl, undermines affordability, and ends the use of municipal green building standards. It is most harmful to those municipalities already on a green path. The only winners here are the builders of new subdivisions.

Bill 23 is an appalling abuse of power. CAM urges everyone in Muskoka to raise our collective voice in opposition. What you can do:

Climate Action Muskoka is an inclusive, non-partisan Muskoka-based group formed in 2019 whose mission is to collaborate with individuals, businesses, groups and all levels of government to mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis. Find us at www.climateactionmuskoka.org, on Facebook and Instagram @climateactionmuskoka.

Open Submission to Hidden Valley Gas Expansion Project

CAM

Muskoka – Enbridge Gas Inc is preparing a major gas pipeline expansion in the Hidden Valley area of Huntsville. As one of the ‘interested and potentially affected parties” and as a “stakeholder” in the future, Climate Action Muskoka (CAM) is compelled to respond to this expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure in Muskoka.  

“Since the climate impacts of this gas expansion are not being considered, Enbridge Gas’ statement that it is ‘protecting the health and safety of all individuals affected by our activities’ comes across as hollow greenwashing,” says CAM spokesperson, Sue McKenzie. 

33 Ontario municipalities, including Bracebridge, have called for the phase-out of gas power in Ontario. Earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the world that new investments being made in coal, oil and gas were “delusional” given their impact on climate change. 

“Nothing could be more clear or present than the danger of fossil fuel expansion,” Guterres told the Major Economies Forum last month. 

If you have concerns about this expansion in our riding, CAM urges you to submit your comments to the Hidden Valley Community Expansion Project Virtual Open House questionnaire, pdf by July 8, 2022. For more information and a version you can complete online go to https://solutions.ca/HiddenValleyEA/ and scroll to the bottom. Your comments will be sent to the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) as part of the Environmental Assessment Report on the project.

CAM’s submission to the Hidden Valley Gas Expansion Project follows: 

“Thank you for the opportunity to provide input on this project.

As you may know, last year Huntsville declared a climate emergency, and in that declaration committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by 50% by 2030. Responding to this climate change emergency must be a top priority for all of us according to the IPCC report of 2018 and recently reiterated by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. 

The gas line project you propose is intended to heat homes by burning gas, which will expand and lock in fossil fuel use and GHG production for decades to come. 95% of natural gas is methane the second biggest contributor to global warming.  

The pipelines installed will cost on average over $26,000 per home, money which the province will pay to Enbridge. Householders opt in if they want the gas and then pay another $10,000 for an HVAC system.  

The Ontario Government has set aside more than $234mn for these pipelines (Ministry of Energy, Northern Development and Mines) though existing gas users have been paying $1 a month since July 2019 to pay for them, and new customers will pay a surcharge of 23 cents a cubic meter over the next 40 years (Narwhal).  

This money could instead be used for the following: 

  • Cold air heat pumps (air source heat pumps) that use electricity, not fossil fuels, to heat homes and which can capture heat from the air at -30C. The average heat pump can cost as little as half the $26k you are spending on each home. 
  • Provide air conditioning at the click of a switch (an additional benefit of heat pumps) and which is becoming essential as ‘heat domes’ become more prevalent. 
  • The money should be given directly to homeowners to install heat pumps and to improve insulation and windows. Reducing heat loss makes homes more affordable.  
  • Provide continuing well paid jobs retrofitting homes to conserve heat. 
  • Avoid the road works and disruption that pipelines will require. 
     

Your gas expansion project is a costly use of money and resources to install a system which is already becoming obsolete. Municipal heating regulations are already requiring installation of non-fossil heating systems (Quebec, Vancouver, New York City) and Building Codes will soon require the same thing. The infrastructure you are proposing for Huntsville and Burk’s Falls is damaging to the climate and is clearly unfit for purpose.” 

CAM Partners with Retired Teachers of Ontario to Deliver Climate Curriculum to Muskoka Students

CAM
Climate Curriculum in Muskoka Schools

TLDSB Superintendent of Education Jay MacJanet receives a delivery of bookmarks and curriculum. Left to right: Tamsen Tillson, Sue McKenzie, Len Ring, Jay MacJanet, Janet Libke, Linda Mathers and Joanne Garvey.

You have no doubt heard of Climate Action Muskoka’s Community Carbon Challenge, an initiative to highlight and promote everyday actions that we can all take to reduce our carbon footprint to achieve a 50% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030.
This week, in partnership with the Retired Teachers of Ontario RTOERO, District 46 Muskoka, Community Carbon Challenge-inspired curriculum along with CCC bookmarks are being delivered to all Muskoka students in grades 4-6 in the Trillium Lakelands District School Board, Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board, and every private school.

A downloadable PDF of this curriculum is free to access

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> HERE<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< 

Know a teacher who might be interested? Please share!  

Bookmarks-QRCodeCurriculum

“We hope that students will take the ideas home and encourage their families to take up the Challenge to reduce their GHG emissions”, says CAM member, Len Ring.  

A study of youth around the globe, released in Britain last September prior to the global COP26 Climate Summit, reveals that young people are feeling helplessness and despair about the climate crisis. It identified the source of their anxiety as adults not taking the actions required to protect their future. Source.

The bookmark project in Muskoka provides the opportunity to enhance family discussions that focus on solutions, starting with individual actions.  

Have you signed up yet to take the Community Carbon Challenge? Learn more and get started today!

March 25 — Special Fridays For Future Global Strike #PeopleNotProfit

CAM
People not profit

Mark your calendars for next Friday, March 25. We hope you’ll join us for a special #FridaysForFuture #People Not Profit Global Climate Strike, Friday March 25. 

Bracebridge
11:30 – 12:30 | Memorial Park

Huntsville
11:30 – 12:30 | across the bridge from Main Street, between the bridge and Pizza Nova (This is a new location, so please confirm with your team leader.)

Environment Haliburton! 
Noon to 1:00pm | Meet In front of the locomotive at the end of Head Lake, Haliburton Village

Climate Action Parry Sound
11:30 – 12:30 | Meet at Mary and James Street intersection 

We stand as one body and we stand as one voice. Now, more than ever, it is important to unite our activist voices worldwide. #PeopleNotProfit

Learn more about the strike and its organizers, check out the world map of strike locations and access digital assets HERE. 

March 2, 2022 — The High Price of Bad Energy Choices

CAM

This month, in a collaborative event with Seniors for Climate Action Now! and Climate Action Muskoka, EH! will host Jack Gibbons from The Ontario Clean Air Alliance. 

The high price of bad energy choices

Under the Ford government plans, gas plants will be used to replace aging nuclear reactors and meet new demands for electricity from electric vehicles and home heating. But this will result in soaring greenhouse gas emissions at a time when we should be doing everything we can to combat climate change. Gibbons will lay out an alternative plan for getting Ontario to a zero-carbon electricity grid by 2030.

recording available here

Getting Ontario to a Zero-Carbon Electricity Grid by 2030

Ontario Clean Air Alliance – January 2022 – report

Ontario historic emissions

According to Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), the greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution from Ontario’s gas-fired power plants will increase by 375% by 2030 and by more than 600% by 2040 as the province uses fossil gas to replace aging nuclear reactors and to meet growing demand for electricity driven by population growth and the increased electrification of homes, buildings and transportation systems. If this occurs, Ontario will lose almost half (48%) of the pollution reduction benefits that it achieved by phasing-out its dirty coal plants.

READ THE Report

“Posing as Canadian: How Big Foreign Oil Captures Canadian Energy and Climate Policy”

CAM

Muskoka – Please join political economist and Gravenhurst resident Gordon Laxer in a webinar on his new report exposing the disturbing power and influence of multi-national foreign oil corporations on Canadian climate and energy policy, Thursday, January 27, 2022 at 7:30 pm.

Published by the Council of Canadians and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, “Posing as Canadian: How Big Foreign Oil Captures Canadian Energy and Climate Policy” reveals how foreign fossil fuel interests influence Canadian governments.

“People may be surprised and intrigued to learn that all major oil corporations operating in Canada are fully or majority foreign-owned,” says Laxer. “Yet they wave the maple leaf flag, meddle in Canadian politics and perpetually lobby the federal and Alberta governments. In a healthy democracy, the voters, not foreign-influenced corporations, shape the policies enacted in their name.”

The event is jointly hosted by Climate Action Muskoka (CAM), Environment Haliburton! (EH!) and Seniors for Climate Action Now! (SCAN!).

RECORDING NOW AVAIABLE

The report found that foreign-owned corporations fund about 97 per cent of the revenue of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) – the apex oil and gas lobby group in Canada. A 2018 law bans foreign entities from meddling in Canadian elections. But, if corporations list their headquarters in Canada, they can register as third-party advertisers for elections. Executives of foreign-owned oil corporations have made sizeable contributions to political parties and politicians who favour their agenda. The report recommends closing the loophole.

“Climate impacts now occur across Canada. Oil and gas production is the largest source of carbon pollution here, but still governments drag their feet on policies to transition off fossil fuels. Now we know why,” says CAM co-founder, Sue McKenzie. “Canadians want to be listened to and want a ‘made in Canada’ climate policy, not one influenced by foreign fossil fuel interests.”

Gordon Laxer is a political economist, professor emeritus at the University of Alberta, and the founding Director of Parkland Institute. He is the author of two award-winning books (After the Sands: Energy and Ecological Security for Canadians, and Open for Business: The Roots of Foreign Ownership in Canada) and the editor of several others. He has published over 40 journal articles, refereed book chapters, and research reports. His op-eds have been published widely in Canadian outlets and he has also been a regular guest on current affairs radio and television programs. 

Find the Report and more here: www.gordonlaxer.com

Climate Action Muskoka, COP26 Climate Strike, G8 flag park in Huntsville.

CAM
While they talk, our world burns. Climate Action Muskoka, COP26 Climate Strike, Saturday November 6, at the G8 flag park in Huntsville.

COP26 Climate Strike, Saturday November 6, at the G8 flag park in Huntsville. Click the arrow to play the Slide show!
More pictures on Facebook:  Climate Action Muskoka 
and Instagram @climateactionmuskoka

COP 26 and Net Zero’s Dangerous Distractions 

CAM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Climate Action Muskoka (CAM) is co-sponsoring a vital and timely pre-COP26 (Conference of the Parties) webinar with Environment Haliburton!(EH!) and Seniors for Climate Action Now! (SCAN!) titled COP 26 and Net Zero’s Dangerous Distractions this Thursday, October 28 at 7:30pm ET. All are welcome to attend.


Marc Lee, prominent senior economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA), will discuss what the concept of “Net Zero” is and why it is a dangerous mitigation plan to address the climate crisis. The SCAN! Education Committee will explain why the success of COP26 is critical for the future. 

Lee joined the CCPA in 1998 and is one of Canada’s leading progressive commentators on economic and social policy issues. He led the CCPA’s Climate Justice Project (CJP) which published a wide range of research on fair and effective approaches to climate action through integrating principles of social justice.

The CCPA is an independent, non-partisan research institute concerned with issues of social, economic and environmental justice. Founded in 1980, it is one of Canada’s leading progressive voices in public policy debates. 

The CCPA produces the research and analysis necessary for policymakers, activists, and everyday Canadians to make informed decisions and press for social change.

Register for the webinar here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIvcuGuqD4vHtHpYkfOh0WNXUD3hmEejUIH?fbclid=IwAR0gELUJPxXDU7deMV4we7F6QdmL0hzAkx_27PdLDkXBmqxLlurCVAPSX5Y  

or on the EH! website: https://www.environmenthaliburton.org/