Progressive Conservative incumbent Allan MacMaster, Liberal candidate Bobby Morris, NDP candidate Michelle Smith.
The Council of Canadians Inverness County chapter is asking their local candidates running in the Nova Scotia provincial election their position on Nova Scotia forests and the forestry industry.
The chapter’s media release notes, “The Inverness County Chapter of the Council of Canadians has a question for the provincial election candidates in their riding. In recent months the chapter hosted two well-attended expert panel discussions on the multiple pressures facing Nova Scotia forests and the forest industry; they include climate change, over-harvesting, clear cutting and an economically driven push towards a boreal forest type rather than our natural Acadian forest.”
The question for the candidates is:
Will you re-commit to implementing all of the policy and regulatory commitments developed through, and committed by the Nova Scotia Natural Resources Strategy process including and especially:
– reduce clear cutting to no more than 50% of all forest harvesting,
– bring in regulations to limit whole tree harvesting,
– discontinue public subsidies for herbicide spraying,
– bring in a cap on forest harvesting (annual allowable cut),
– involve non-industry stakeholders in actual decision-making for Crown land management,
– introduce an Act to protect native biodiversity?
The candidates in the Inverness riding are:
Progressive Conservative — Allan MacMaster
Liberal — Bobby Morris
New Democratic Party — Michelle Smith
The chapter has asked that the candidates provide their answers in writing by May 19.
The provincial election will be held on May 30.
The Council of Canadians is a non-partisan organization that endorses no political party, but rather is committed to building a peoples’ movement capable of holding any government accountable to the public interest.
Note: Chapter activist Anne Lévesque says, “Liberal Bobby Morris was the only candidate who responded. His answer will be released to the media this week.”
#nselxn17
