As Shakespeare wrote more than 400 years ago, “Action is eloquence.” And now we see some eloquent action, more than forty years since the first Trudeau government declared a moratorium on oil tanker traffic for British Columbia’s North Coast. We think it’s poetic justice that this year the new Trudeau government has promised to make the protection permanent.
WCEL applauds the commitment in the Mandate Letters to the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard which include formalizing the moratorium as a top priority for both Ministries. We’ve been outspoken advocates for a legislated oil tanker prohibition on the Pacific north coast for many years, and we have been getting a lot of questions about this issue. So we are pleased to release this Backgrounder that addresses many of the frequently asked questions: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: PACIFIC NORTH COAST OIL TANKER BAN.
In our opinion, a legislatedtanker ban is the best way to protect the North Pacific, as we wrote in this op-ed published in the Vancouver Sun in December. This is the decisive step the government needs to take to build the future British Columbians wantand to recognize the decision of Coastal First Nations to ban oil tankers from their territories.Other much needed federal actions to secure the health of Canada’s Pacific waters are complete a network of representative marine protected areas; and re-engage with the province of BC and First Nations partners in the Marine Planning Partnership to build on their co-led innovative marine spatial plans - see a gorgeous video clip describing the plans here. There’s a synergy here - the sum of these individual actions is so much greater than their individual parts.
Please take a look at our FAQ on the ban, and get in touch if you'd like to learn more about how the law can workto keep our coast clean for now and into the future.
Linda Nowlan met with Transport Minister on January 13 to discuss a north coast tanker ban.