Petition against Tantramar gas plant tabled in Parliament by Green Party

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May tabled a petition in Parliament on Tuesday opposing NB Power’s proposed fossil fuel-burning power plant in southeast New Brunswick.

The petition, which gathered 1,150 signatures, calls on MPs to “halt all federal approvals” for the project, which would be built by American firm ProEnergy near Centre Village.

May, who represents the west coast riding of Saanich–Gulf Islands, said the project is a concern for her constituents even though it’s on the other side of the country.

Speaking in the House of Commons, she noted that the low-lying Chignecto Isthmus where the plant would be located — a narrow landmass connecting Nova Scotia to the larger Canadian mainland — is vulnerable to rising sea-levels linked to the climate crisis.

“It’s under extreme threat from climate change, and since the 1980s the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change identified that this particular area was particularly vulnerable to sea level rise,” she said.

“So in other words, we could lose the Nova Scotia’s connection by land to the rest of Canada, a multi-billion dollar impact for sure.”

The petition calls for a “full, independent environmental and climate impact assessment under the Impact Assessment Act, including baseline and bi-annual water testing for residential wells.”

It also calls for the designation of the Chignecto Isthmus as a federally protected area; the enforcement of federal environmental laws; support for renewable energy projects; and a buffer zone between residential areas and a power plant, if it’s ultimately built.

The petition was launched by Kristen LeBlanc, who lives in Midgic. She said her home is less than 10 kilometres from the proposed site of the power plant. “I have a nine-year-old daughter who will be impacted by this,” she said in a message to the NB Media Co-op.

LeBlanc said she’s not a Green Party member but expressed gratitude to the Green Party Leader for bringing the petition forward. “They certainly have my support and vote,” she said.

David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, via the Local Journalism Initiative.