By Tyler Marr

Group to march for environmental protection

Apr 18, 2017 | 2:00 PM

Working to get a larger portion of the population to put environment protection before the economy, dozens will take to the streets Saturday in a march for environmental stewardship through social justice.

“We are told by the majority of scientists and we have been since the 80s that these extreme weather events we will have will make the planet less habitable,” Nancy Carswell, spokesperson for the local chapter of the Council of Canadians, said. “The economy will just go by the wayside and we will be left with the inability to sustain human life on the planet.”

The march will be in solidarity with sister marches taking place later across the globe to promote clean air, water and land, with a message to push for more clean energy jobs.

“We have industry regulated government instead of government regulated industry and they are just so big and so powerful,” Carswell said. 

She feels appeals and lobbying efforts from oil and gas companies can control policy and regulations and was a practice she wants to see go by the wayside.

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“The government has a choice with every piece of legislation whether to favour the employers or the employees. As long as they favour the employees, we are going to have these externalized costs on the environment,” she said.

She said the need to hold a march was to grab people’s attention and deviate from what at times can be routines of “preaching to the converted.”

Moving from the John M. Cuelenaere Library to City Hall, when the march arrives at Memorial Square, scattered on the ground will be recycled old roof tiles in the shape of footprints, and written on the back will be ways individuals can work to reduce their carbon footprint on the environment.

“It is a symbolic act and it will simply show we can start doing all of these acts and lower our carbon footprint on the earth,” she said.

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr