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LETTER: Albertans rising up – again – against coal mining

Many Albertans are vehemently opposed to the UCP government rescinding moratoriums on open pit coal mines along the Eastern Slopes. 
NEWS-County Coal Protest BWC 3815 web
Demonstrators opposed to coal mining in Alberta's Eastern Slopes protest outside the Foothills County office.

Dear Editor, 

“The Mountains Are Calling” is an appropriate sticker on my glass patio door. It was on my mind as I joined a carpool of friends on Jan. 24 heading down to an open house at Livingston-Macleod MLA Chelsae Petrovic’s office in Claresholm. 

It was standing room only, crammed with dozens of people who were visibly and vehemently opposed to Energy Minister Brian Jean’s Jan. 15 letter to the AER in which he rescinded all existing government moratoriums on open pit coal mines along our precious Eastern Slopes. 

Jean’s heinous decision means that all watersheds downstream and downwind of any coal mining activities will be poisoned. It’s not theoretical, it’s fact – based on what has already happened in B.C.’s Elk Valley. (No surprise that Pincher Creek’s Walmart cannot keep up with the demand for bottled water, a resident told the crowd.) 

What do you think will happen in southern Alberta to the ever-diminishing supply of drinking water for a quarter million people, our huge agriculture/ranching/tourism sectors and, lest we forget, all the wildlife that also need clean water? 

Petrovic acknowledged both the passionate crowd indoors and many other people standing outside in the cold wind holding up protest signs and receiving waves and loud honks of support from passing vehicles of all kinds. 

The key issues of water contamination and scarcity were highlighted by a surprising cross-section of people from a variety of livelihoods, mostly from the surrounding area and all of us outraged that we once again must fight the UCP government to protect our water. 

Petrovic incredulously stated that most of the emails she had received were in favour of these toxic open pit coal mines (she could not provide numbers when asked). After much back and forth and deflecting over to Jean, she agreed to the following action items: 

1. Contact not only Jean but also Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz and Agriculture Minister RJ Sigurdson to convene a local in-person town hall meeting to hear feedback directly from stakeholders affected by Jean’s decisions, and for each of the ministers to defend/explain their actions/inactions. 

2. Contact Premier Danielle Smith to request a province-wide binding referendum on all types of coal mining along the Eastern Slopes. 

Has Jean also exposed Alberta taxpayers to even more billion-dollar lawsuits when he is forced yet again to backtrack based on our escalating protests and the irrefutable evidence? 

What part of ‘no’ does this UCP government not understand? 

Gord Petersen 

Okotoks 

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