Category: Coalition news

“It’s time to discuss the ways to tackle climate change at the grassroots level, the role of local communities in shaping Canada’s energy policies, and strategic actions and innovative solutions to cap emissions and accelerate our transition to cleaner energy.”

That describes events planned in Fredericton and Sackville by Sierra Club Canada and local hosts. The events are open to everyone.

Sierra Club Canada – Atlantic Chapter are good friends of CRED-NB. Stop-SMRs in NB is a Sierra Club Canada campaign. July 31 in Fredericton and August 1 in Sackville you can meet Sierra Club national programs director Gretchen Fitzgerald and local climate advocates and experts.

In Fredericton @6 PM Wednesday, July 31, at the Charlotte St. Arts Centre Gretchen will co-host with Moe Qureshi of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick (CCNB).

In Sackville @11:30 AM Thursday, August 1, at the Sackville Commons at 18 Lorne St., Gretchen will co-host with Tantramar Alliance Against Hydro-fracking (TAAHF) and include speaker Sabine Dietz (CLIMAtlantic).

Pizza will be served in Fredericton • in Sackville there will be “an assortment of light snacks prepared by ‘Ketchup With That’ kitchen.” Organizers asked anyone planning to go to respond to the Facebook event page: Fredericton page HERE • Sackville page HERE

CRED-NB, along with 80 groups across Canada, is asking the federal government to withdraw the appointment of the new president of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC). We signed the letter because it seems clear that the new CNSC prez has very strong ties to the industry he’s now tasked with regulating. The letter and media release are HERE.

Organizers are asking individuals in support of this request to contact your Member of Parliament to register your concern.

Since our coalition formed four years ago, CRED-NB has been vocal in our opposition to the two new nuclear projects planned for the Point Lepreau site on the Bay of Fundy. One of the projects, ARC-100, is currently undergoing a provincial environmental impact assessment. Read our info page about the project HERE.

This week there were several news reports indicating that the ARC project is in trouble. CRED-NB core member Susan O’Donnell writes about the situation today in the NB Media Co-op, HERE.

CRED-NB Champion Mary Lou Harley lives in Nova Scotia where a legislative change stripped the province of “legal protection from expensive and dangerous nuclear power experiments, a protection we have had for over 30 years.” Read Mary Lou’s story HERE in the NB Media Co-op where she explains the situation and the implications for her province.

The House of Commons standing committee on natural resources is conducting a study on Canada’s electricity grid and network. CRED-NB submitted a brief for the study that will be considered when the committee drafts its final report to Parliament. Our brief is HERE.

We have three main recommendations:

1) Canada should use the fastest and most affordable pathway to a zero GHG emission power grid in Canada: replacing fossil fuel-fired generation solely with renewable energy sources complemented by energy storage, transmission interties and demand-side management.

2) Canada should minimize the time and resources spent on developing new nuclear reactors, especially risky new experimental reactors, as they are not required to build a zero GHG emission energy grid in Canada.

3) All federal funding for research and development of new nuclear reactors and all grid energy technologies should be moved to government research granting agencies.

CRED-NB is encouraging other groups and individuals to also submit briefs for this study. Our brief could provide a template. The link to the study is HERE.

In May, former New Brunswick Energy Minister Mike Holland tabled a bill to change the Electricity Act. The change would allow NB Power to enter a partnership with Ontario Power Generation (OPG). The bill became law in early June.

In a letter to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) on May 29, Peskotomuhkati Chief Hugh Akagi outlined his initial concerns with the proposed agreement between NB Power and OPG, which reportedly includes a partial ownership stake in the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station.

The letter is from the Passamoquoddy Recognition Group (PRGI) which represents the Peskotomuhkati Nation in Canada and the interests of rightsholders and the Peskotomuhkati ecosystem, including the Point Lepreau Nuclear Station. Any new owners of the Lepreau CANDU nuclear reactor will have rights and responsibilities that PRGI wants clarified.

Read the story published today in the NB Media Co-op, HERE.

CRED-NB champion, the New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance (NBASGA), put its comments on the energy transition up on its website, HERE.

In its submission, NBASGA argues that renewable energy – primarily wind and solar – should be the focus of the lion’s share of New Brunswick’s energy investments. It is the only option that checks all the strategic focus boxes, including affordability, energy security and reliability. Similar to CRED-NB, NBASGA believes that new nuclear energy is not needed. The submission quotes the latest research showing that SMRs are too expensive, slow and risky.

Energy storage plays a key role in helping wind and solar power dominate the growth in electrical grid capacity. Storage includes batteries or other systems that hold energy until it’s needed. With adequate storage, the New Brunswick electrical grid no longer needs energy sources such as natural gas that emits greenhouse gases (GHGs) or risky and expensive nuclear power.

Read the full article in the NB Media Co-op by CRED-NB’s Tom McLean, HERE.

CRED-NB is pleased to participate in an information-sharing workshop in Fredericton presented by the NS Voice of Women for Peace. This activity is part of their journey to Ottawa to join with peace and social justice groups from across Canada to protest CANSEC, the largest annual weapons trade show in Canada.

At the event, CRED-NB will share information on the links between the civilian nuclear industry, including in Canada and New Brunswick, and the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

The workshop, entitled Demilitarize, Decarbonize, Decolonize, will be held in Fredericton at Conserver House, 180 St. John Street, on Saturday, May 25 from 7 to 8 PM.

On April 23, CRED-NB core member Tom McLean presented our vision of a nuclear-free renewable energy future as part of the Atlantic Canada Climate network speaker series. In the video, Tom describes how New Brunswick can meet its future energy needs with renewable energy and storage technologies. Watch the video: