The Comox Valley Record will be running candidate submissions for every candidate running in the two local electoral districts. The following is the submission filed by Courtenay-Comox BC Greens candidate Gillian Anderson.
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Dear Comox Valley voters,
I’m running as the BC Green candidate for Courtenay-Comox because we need a new vision for British Columbia.
Once we were a province with rivers and coasts teeming with oolichan, herring and salmon, millions of acres of ancient woods, abundant caribou herds and plentiful, clean water. Today, 1,900 B.C. species like sockeye and chinook salmon and caribou are at risk. Emaciated grizzlies prowl empty rivers and the remaining malnourished and toxin-laden southern resident killer whales struggle to keep their calves alive in the noisy and busy Salish Sea. First Nations see their lands and cultural sites desecrated by industrial activity.
How did we squander this abundance?
Our governments have put the prosperity of fossil fuel industries and logging corporations above the interests of British Columbians. It was a reckless and short-sighted way to manage a province. I had hoped the NDP would be different from the Christy Clark government, but despite many campaign promises to change the way we govern our province, John Horgan has continued this failed approach.
Taking up where the Liberals left off, Horgan has logged over a million acres of old-growth forest while he’s been in office. Despite a recommendation for a moratorium from his Old Growth Panel and a letter of concern signed by 200 scientists, this logging continues, even in critical caribou habitat. Horgan gave $5.35 billion in subsidies to the LNG industry as B.C.’s greenhouse gas emissions increased 3.5 per cent in 2018. He ploughed ahead with Site C to provide power for his LNG dream despite warnings from experts that the soil was unstable. Site C is now slated to cost over $12 billion, up from the original $8.3 billion. B.C. children born today will pay for Site C for the rest of their lives.
The BC Green Party offers you a new vision. Let’s stop throwing your hard-earned tax dollars at pie-in-the-sky megaprojects that hasten climate change, and instead start building prosperous and safe communities by investing in climate-friendly infrastructure and energy-efficient building retrofits. Let’s choose to spend our revenues on supporting local renewable energy projects and sustainable agriculture, protecting our watersheds, and restoring fish and wildlife habitats. Let’s fund Just Transitions for affected workers and ensure decent wages for the workers who keep our communities running for everyone.
We will invest in affordable child care and public housing, education, transportation, better care for our seniors and more funding for treatment of drug addiction and mental health issues. BC Greens will continue to call for real action for implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.
We are nearing a pivotal moment in human history as global warming heats up the planet and acidifies the oceans. As we face the challenges of climate change and COVID, we need a new way for B.C.
I would be honoured to speak for you in Victoria.
Please vote for me, Gillian Anderson, to be your Green voice. Thank you.