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Fighting offshore drilling at home and abroad

Following the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities Fall Conference, the Council of Canadians, the Campaign to Protect Offshore Nova Scotia, the Clean Ocean Action Committee and the Sierra Club Canada Foundation, are holding a public event about the fight against offshore drilling in Canada and in the coastal United States. 

Participants will hear from Mayor Sheila Davies (Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina), Councilor John Weber (Bradley Beach, New Jersey), and the Campaign to Protect Offshore Nova Scotia about the international effort to stop offshore drilling. 

“On both sides of the border, municipal governments and local communities are leading the charge to protect our communities from offshore drilling and exploration,” said Mayor Davies. “In the US, our community-based movement has kept our seas and shores free from offshore activity despite federal attempts to open Atlantic leases to exploration and drilling.”

“In the US, more than 370 communities have come together to say no to offshore drilling,” said Councilor John Weber. “Together, we have been able to force the federal government to listen. Together, communities in Nova Scotia can do the same, and protect our shared coast.” 

Event: Our coasts, economy, climate: the fight against offshore drilling here and abroad
Date: Friday, November 8, 2019
Time: Speakers will be available for interviews at 6:30pm, event commences at 7pm
Location: Mahone Bay Centre, ​45 School Street, Mahone Bay

This event is a microcosm of the movement against offshore drilling in Nova Scotia. Speakers and hosts include a lobster fisherman, two municipal reps from the US, a local Mi’kmaq artist, a youth climate striker, the Council of Canadians, and the local community group driving action on the ground.

Despite the well-documented need to rapidly move toward a renewable energy future, provincial and federal governments are continuing to support and deregulate exploration for offshore oil and gas in Nova Scotian waters. 

The Council of Canadians has been working in coalition with community, environmental, and fishers’ organizations to get municipalities to support a moratorium on offshore drilling until the completion of a full and independent public inquiry into the impacts of oil industry exploration offshore Nova Scotia. 

To date, 12 municipalities have passed resolutions calling for a public inquiry, representing 25 per cent of Nova Scotia’s municipal governments. Over 65,000 people have signed a petition calling for an inquiry. 

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Founded in 1985, the Council of Canadians is a grassroots-based social action organization, mobilizing a network of 60 chapters across the country and over 150,000 supporters from coast-to-coast-to-coast.

Through our campaigns we advocate for clean water, fair trade, green energy, public health care, and a vibrant democracy. We educate and empower people to hold our governments and corporations accountable.

Join us and be part of a global movement working for social and environmental justice. We believe a better Canada and a fairer world are possible. Together, we turn that belief into action.

The Council of Canadians is a registered non-profit organization and does not accept money from corporations or governments.