Since U.S. President Barack Obama was elected, a number of U.S.
policies
aimed at addressing climate change on a state and national level have
been
moving forward. Recent views expressed by Canadian government
officials
indicate a disconcerting pattern to use trade-based threats to dissuade
U.S.
policy measures that would benefit the environment by reducing oil
exports
from Alberta’s environmentally destructive tar sands to U.S.
markets.

*****Take action******!******* Use our action alert and send an email
to
Natural Resources Minister Raitt, Environment Minister Prentice and
Prime
Minister Harper telling them that this is not the right response.
Instead of
looking to ensure future markets for tar sands oil in the U.S., the
federal
government should work with the Albertan government and use the
market-based
temporary pause in tar sands expansions to assess and address the
serious
social and environmental impacts of the tar sands and develop a plan
to
transition to sustainable energy production and consumption. Halting
all tar
sands expansions including infrastructure for export is an important
first
step.

*****Action alert:*****

*http://www.canadians.org/action/2009/12-June-09.html*<http://www.canadians.org/action/2009/12-June-09.html>

Read the Council of Canadians letter to Natural Resources Minister
Raitt, Environment
Minister Prentice and Prime Minister Harper at:

*****
http://www.canadians.org/energy/documents/Letter-Raitt-Prentice_June0...<http://www.canadians.org/energy/documents/Letter-Raitt-Prentice_June0...>

 Andrea Harden-Donahue

Council of Canadians, Energy Campaigner

(613) 233-4487 ext. 240

ahar...@canadians.org

Find out more about our energy campaign at: www.canadians.org/energy