October 11, 2012
Sydney, Nova Scotia– A coalition of groups is working to raise awareness of the “phony” public consultations being hosted by the Canada – Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board, (C-NLOPB), in Sydney today. The ‘consultations’ are part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) update of ‘Old Harry’ and Western NL’s Gulf waters, ordered by Environment Minister Peter Kent last year.
“Unfortunately, these alleged consultations are not transparent or democratic. What makes them even worse is that they appear to have little to do with the environment,” said Mary Gorman, of the Save Our Seas and Shores Coalition. “With tens of thousands of renewable jobs at stake in our tourism and fishing industries, the Gulf’s coastal communities deserve to be taken more seriously than this.”