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CPAWS Asks Premier Doer to “Make Forests Count” at Global Climate Change Summit
October 5th, 2009Source: Cpaws Manitoba News Release
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society is asking Premier Doer to “Make Forests Count” at the Governors’ Global Climate Summit 2, On the Road to Copenhagen, which continues today and tomorrow in Los Angeles. To date, the Manitoba government has left protection of the Boreal Region’s carbon stores out of its Climate Change Strategy. As the Boreal’s forests and wetlands are the largest terrestrial storehouse of carbon on the planet, it’s shocking the province has yet to include large-scale Boreal protection from industrial developments as part of its Climate Strategy.
Canada’s Boreal stores more than 186 billion tons of carbon – 27 years’ worth of global carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels! But when the Boreal Forest is developed or logged, its ability to absorb and store carbon is lost or reduced, which degrades its ability to help moderate our climate.
“Large-scale protection of Manitoba’s Boreal Region is a vital key to taking our foot off the global warming accelerator, ” said Ron Thiessen, Executive Director of the Manitoba chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society.
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness society is asking the Manitoba government to include the following in its Climate Change Action Plan:
# Protect more than 50% of Manitoba’s Boreal forests and wetlands from industrial developments;
# Account fully for the carbon lost by cutting forests and destroying wetlands;
For more information, please contact Ron Thiessen at 204 794 4971.
Manitoba government press release below:
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Manitoba News Release
……………………………………………………
October 1, 2009
DOER TO ATTEND GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE SUMMIT
Premier Gary Doer is joining Quebec Premier Jean Charest, British
Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell, Newfoundland and Labrador
Premier Danny Williams and other leaders from around the world at
the Governors’ Global Climate Summit 2, On the Road to
Copenhagen, which continues today and tomorrow in Los Angeles.
Co-hosted by seven U.S. governors including California Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger and New York Gov. David Paterson, the
summit includes a panel discussion on national and sub-national
co-operation featuring Doer, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, Nancy
Sutley, chair of the White House Council on Environmental
Quality, as well as governors from states and provinces in
Brazil, Indonesia and Nigeria.
“For many years, regional governments have been at the forefront
of showing leadership and taking action on climate change,” Doer
said. “We must continue to work together to shape global policy
as we prepare for the international agreement that we hope will
be completed in Copenhagen later this year.”
The premier will also join Carole Vivier, CEO of Manitoba Film
and Music, at an event where he will address more than 15
directors, producers and studio executives on the advantages of
making movies in Manitoba.
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