Scott Niedermayer: A Canadian for the Great Bear

“Good morning everybody, I’m Scott Niedermayer and I’m here as a Canadian for the Great Bear.”  Greeting a roomful of television cameras, photographers and reporters at Vancouver’s Pan Pacific hotel last week, Canada’s hockey hero kicked off the national launch of Canadians for the Great Bear.

A Kermode bear (Ursus americanus kermodei) preparing to enter the water of a river in the Great Bear Rainforest, British Columbia, Canada © Natalie Bowes / WWF-Canada

From national television to provincial talk shows, the national campaign to support a sustainable future for the Great Bear has made news across this country.  A diverse group of expert spokespeople faced the cameras to voice concerns about the risks posed by the proposed Northern Gateway Project to Canada’s economy, environment and energy security.  Here are a few highlights:
The Risks Outweigh the Benefits
B.C. business owner and author Peter Ladner declared, “I am a Canadian for the Great Bear because I believe the economic and environmental risks of the Northern Gateway Pipeline Project far outweigh the benefits.”
What’s at stake?
Scott Niedermayer – “As places like this disappear around the world, we have the opportunity, and the responsibility, to make the decisions to protect areas like this for future generations.”
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTVsWEkAWPs&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]
Grand Chief Edward John, Hereditary Chief of Tl’azt’en Nation – For First Nations, “the potential impact from large tanker traffic and an oil spill could have devastating consequences for food sources as well as livelihoods.”
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZo-cl2djtM&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]
Economist Robyn Allan – “If we build the Northern Gateway pipeline, Canadians agree to higher oil prices, to exporting our jobs, and to giving away Canada’s energy security. “
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z94hVPjwfhE&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]
Also joining the campaign, marine ecologist Anne Salomon skyped into the conference from the Hakai Institute in the Great Bear where she was teaching a field class on the resilience of social-ecological systems. Hon. Tom Siddon, former Conservative Fisheries Minister, along with University of British Columbia professor Eric B. Taylor also signed on.
Canadians for the Great Bear will be reaching out to Canadians across Canada to raise support for the Great Bear. Please join us! Spread the word. And find out more.