Over 40 Groups Sign on to Oppose Oil and Gas Exploration in Gulf of St. Lawrence

Release Open letter to Premier Williams, Ministers Shea, Prentice (see below for Response from Hon. Gail Shea)

Media Advisory

For Immediate Release: September 14, 2010

Please find attached an open letter to Premier Danny Williams of Newfoundland and Labrador, Federal Fisheries Minister Gail Shea, and Federal Environment Minister Gail Shea respectfully requesting that Premier Williams rescind the ‘Old Harry Licence’ off Western Newfoundland and that the federal government, in consultation with the provinces, implement an immediate moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Over 40 First Nations, fishing organizations and conservation groups have signed the letter.

For more information:

Nova Scotia

Mary Gorman, Save our Seas and Shores, 902-926-2128/mjgorman@ns.sympatico.ca

Prince Edward Island

Mike McGeoghegan, PEI Fishermen’s Association, 902-394-3510/mikemcgccga@pei.eastlink.ca

Newfoundland and Labrador

Julie Huntington, CPAWS-NL, 709-895-0853/whales@nl.rogers.com

Quebec

Danielle Giroux(Francais), Attention Fragile (Magdalen Islands) 418-969-9440/dgiroux@tlb.sympatico.ca

George Karpat (English), Sierra Club, Montreal Chapter, 514-989-8714/gkarpat@sympatico.ca

New Brunswick

David Coon, Conservation Council of New Brunswick, 506-466-4033/506-461-1023/dcoon@conservationcouncil.ca

OPEN LETTER TO:

Premier Danny Williams of Newfoundland and Labrador

Federal Fisheries Minister Gail Shea, and

Federal Environment Minister Gail Shea

(Also attached as pdf below)

September 14, 2010

The Hon. Danny Williams, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
Office of the Premier, Confederation Bldg, St. John's NL

The Hon. Jim Prentice, Minister of the Environment
House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario

The Hon Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario

Re: Gulf of St. Lawrence Oil and Gas regulatory regime

Dear Mr. Williams, Mr. Prentice and Ms. Shea:

Recently, an exploration license was issued by the Canada Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board
for the 'Old Harry' oil and gas prospect in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. This has caused anxiety and
despair, but also mobilization of citizens from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island,
Newfoundland, Quebec and the Magdalen Islands.

Six and a half times smaller than the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf of St. Lawrence is a fragile, landlocked,
semi-enclosed body of water that completely exchanges its water with the Atlantic Ocean only once a
year. In 1973, Dr. Loutfi of McGill University described it as the most productive marine region in
Canada that should never be placed in harm's way. According to him, because of its circular,
counterclockwise currents, any oil and gas contamination would be widespread along the Gulf
coastlines of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Newfoundland and
Labrador.

As it stands now, the Right whale, Blue whale, leatherback turtle, piping plover and harlequin duck are
endangered; while Atlantic salmon, cod, fin whale, and humpback whale are in trouble - a disgraceful
indicator that in only fifty years, our generation has taken for granted and degraded our Gulf's natural,
renewable resources. We have allowed unfettered industrial development and pollution with little
regard for the precautionary principle and ecosystem approaches demanded by the United Nations
Convention on Biodiversity.

The problem stems, in part, from the existing offshore regulatory structure which, in our opinion, is
fundamentally flawed.

1. As it exists right now, five Gulf provinces have or will draw on man-made maps that provide
artificial jurisdictional boundaries for undersea hydrocarbon exploitation, as if our Gulf were
five separate bodies of water. Of course, it is not.

It is one natural, irreplaceable ecosystem of magnificent beauty with spawning, nursery and
migratory areas for over two thousand different marine species - lobster, herring, mackerel,
crab, to name a few. Our five provinces have shared these same fish stocks that have sustained
historic Gaelic, Acadian and First Nations coastal communities for centuries. We hope to
continue to do so for future generations and we trust you agree. Our children deserve no less.
May we also remind you that these same fish swim across all the Gulf's provincial boundaries.
This brings us back to the unworkable jurisdictional quagmire we find ourselves in. With all due
respect, Mr. Premier and Honourable Ministers, nothing exists in isolation. It is neither workable nor
acceptable for our five Gulf provinces to be functioning through the National Energy Board and
potentially, five separate offshore petroleum boards.

These separate bodies fail to consider the ecological, economic and social impact these deepwater wells
could pose on all our shores and the at least 50,000 jobs created annually by our Gulf's multi-billion
dollar fisheries and tourism industries. As well, the current regulatory structure permits offshore
petroleum boards to undermine federal and international obligations to protect wildlife threatened or
endangered with extinction. This must not continue.

2. These petroleum boards have irreconcilable mandates as both promoters of extraction and
protectors of our environment. After the BP oil spill, the US government finally recognized this
inherent conflict and has separated these two functions. Surely we don't want to wait until after
the fact.

3. Furthermore, current Canadian legislation limits driller liability in case of spill/damages to $40
million dollars. We hardly think $40 million dollars is adequate. So far, BP has spent $8 billion
dollars and has set aside a total of $20 billion. In the event of an oil spill or well blow-out in our
Gulf, who will pick up the rest of the multi-billion dollar tab? The Canadian taxpayer?

Clearly, the public interest is not protected on any level under the current offshore regulatory regime.
The Gulf of Mexico BP disaster affected an area almost as large as our entire Gulf and scientists
report that the oil released has already entered the food chain. In light of this, we respectfully
request, Premier Williams, that you remove the 'Old Harry' license immediately and deny any
request for seismic testing of the area.

We respectfully request, Minister Shea and Minister Prentice, that you both exercise your
federally-legislated powers to impose an immediate moratorium on any and all oil and gas
exploration in the Gulf of St. Lawrence for now and in the foreseeable future. The benefits of 1 or
2 decades of non-renewable oil revenue could never come even close to justifying the enormous risks
to the centuries-old renewable resources of our priceless Gulf.

Simply put, the Gulf of St. Lawrence is not worth risking.

In closing, 'No generation has the right to live for itself alone. But rather, if there is such a thing as a
natural, moral law, each generation must pay to the future the debt it owes to the past.'

We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely yours,
Mary Gorman
Save Our Seas and Shores Coalition
Merigomish, NS BOK1GO

Organizational co-signers:
Albert D Marshall, Chair, Unama'ki Elders Senate, Eskasoni, NS
Association of Inshore Fishermen of the Magdalen Islands, QC (AIFMI)
Andre Stainier, President, Les Amis de la valée du Saint Laurent, QC
Atlantic Salmon Federation, NB
Attention FragÎles, Magdalen Islands, QC
Conservation Council of New Brunswick (CCNB)
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Nova Scotia Chapter (CPAWS- NS)
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Newfoundland Chapter (CPAWS- NL)
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Quebec Chapter (CPAWS- QC)
David Suzuki Foundation, Fondation David Suzuki
Dr. Irene Novaczek, Earth Action, PEI
Dr Peter G. Wells, Chair, Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP)
Ecology Action Centre, Halifax, NS
Environmental Health Association of Nova Scotia (EHANS), NS
Executive of the Natural History Society of Newfoundland and Labrador
Friends of Covehead and Brackley Bays Watershed Group of PEI
Friends of the Pugwash Estuary, NS
Greenpeace Canada
Gulf Nova Scotia Bonafide Fishermen's Organization, NS
Gulf Nova Scotia Fishermen's Coalition, NS
Gulf NS Herring Federation, NS
Harvey Area Water and Air Quality Committee, NB
Hillsborough River Association, PEI
Ingrid Cottenden, Program Secretary, College of Sustainability, Dalhousie Univ., Hfx, NS
Maliseet Nations Conservation Council, NB
Margaree Environmental Assn, Cape Breton, NS
Maritime Fishermen's Union (MFU),Union des Pecheurs des Maritimes (UPM), NB
Mike McGeoghegan, President, PEI Fishermen's Ass'n (PEIFA), PEI
Northumberland Fishermen's Association, NS
Patty Donovan,Campaign Pesticide Reduction, NB
Petitcodiac Watershed Alliance/Alliance du Bassin Versant Petitcodiac, NB
Pictou County Watershed Coalition, NS
Pisquid River Enhancement Project, PEI
Regroupement des Pecheurs Professionelle des Iles (RPPIM), QC
Regroupent des pecheurs Palangrier Unique des Iles de la Madeleine (RPPUM), QC
Sierra Club Canada - Atlantic Canada Chapter (NS, NB, PEI, and NL)
Sierra Club, Montreal Chapter, QC
Strategies Saint-Laurent, umbrella organisation for the ZIP committees of Quebec
Sunrise Trail Community Development Coop, NS
Victoria Reed, College of Sustainability, Dalhousie University, NS
Wheatley River (watershed) Improvement Coalition (WRIG), PEI
Laura Lambie,Young Naturalists Club of Nova Scotia

Individual co-signers:
Allister Marshall, Chappell Island First Nations, NS
Brenda Hancock, Belle River, PEI, C0A 1B0
Charles Gaines, Writer, East Tracadie, NS
David Donnelly, Environmental Lawyer, Toronto, ON
Dr. Bradley B. Walters, PhD, Coordinator, Environmental Studies, Mount Allison U., Sackville, NB
Dr. Gail Fraser,Associate Professor, Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University
Helen Verbanz, visual artist, Halifax, NS
Janet Baker 214 Brule Point Road, Tatamagouche, NS B0K 1V0
Juan Hidalgo, 90 Haddington Ave, Toronto, ON M5M 2P3
Lynn Davis, Photographer, Dunvegan, NS
Margo Sheppard, 231 Winslow St, Fredericton NB E3B5A6
Patricia Gaines, Artist, East Tracadie, NS
Peggy Hope – Simpson 9 Sunset Terrace, Wolfville, NS B0K 1V0
Philip Glass, Composer, Dunvegan, NS
Richard and Margaret James, 1872 Garden St, Hfx, NS B3H 3R6
Rudy Wurlitzer, Writer, Dunvegan, NS
Susan Hawkins, Stratford, PEI
Wilhelmina Nolan, Grandmother-Elder, Kent County, New Brunswick E4T 2W3

cc: Right Hon. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada
Max Ruelokke, Chairman and CEO, CNLOPB
National Energy Board of Canada
Hon. Darryl Dexter, Premier of Nova Scotia
Hon. Robert Ghiz, Premier of PEI
Hon. Shawn Graham, Premier of New Brunswick
Hon. Jean Charest, Premier of Quebec
Hon. Michael Ignatieff , Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
Hon. Jack Layton, Leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada
Hon. Gilles Duceppe, Leader of the Bloc Quebecois
Ms. Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada