Tim Pearson: The throne speech British Columbians really needed to hear

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      Fellow British Columbians. members of the Legislative Assembly, First Nations, and all indigenous peoples.

      I would like to acknowledge the wisdom, culture, and traditions of the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations on whose traditional lands we are gathered today.

      Fellow British Columbians, we are living in challenging times. The global economy is in turmoil and energy markets in particular are creating enormous uncertainty.

      Our climate is changing rapidly and the impacts are plain to see: more frequent, more severe droughts, prolonged wildfire seasons, forests devastated by mountain pine beetle, acidic oceans killing off shellfish and the jobs that go with them… The list goes on.

      These impacts will accelerate in coming years, unless we act decisively. In the lifetime of children born today, British Columbia’s landscape and wildlife, our communities and our economy, will be transformed almost beyond recognition.

      Your government could continue on a short-sighted path that pushes our natural resources beyond their limits. We could continue to undermine the natural systems upon which all of us depend, that provide clean air and clean water, that provide jobs in our forests and in our waters, that pollinate our crops and ensure we can put fresh food on our tables.

      Or we can admit that changing circumstances mean plans must change.

      That’s what your government has chosen to do. We have the courage to say yes to clean water and healthy forests, to food security, and to a green economy powered by truly renewable energy. We have the courage to say yes to keeping global warming under 1.5°C and to help families and communities adapt to the realities of climate impacts.

      Your government has the courage to say no to fracking and to LNG export, to Site C, and to pushing nature beyond its limits. Your government has heard the concerns of First Nations, we have listened to parents worried about what kind of world their children will inherit and we have heard communities around the province who see the need for change.

      Fellow British Columbians, starting today, your government will begin to stabilize our climate, by leaving fossil fuels in the ground and reducing our emissions.

      Your government will legislate binding, aggressive emissions targets and strengthen accountability to meet those targets. The carbon tax will be increased immediately and we will introduce a climate test to all environmental assessments. Simply put, if a proposal will make climate change worse, it will not get built.

      In preparation for changes that are coming, your government will develop a scientifically informed adaptation plan to help families, communities and our economy manage the changes to come. This plan will address sea-level rise, food production, drinking water, transit, erosion, ecosystems and species habitat, and determine how best to increase the protection of critical lands for food production and freshwater.

      In particular, your government recognizes that food security will be an increasing challenge. The evidence is clear: the Peace River Valley is capable of providing fresh fruit and vegetables for a million British Columbians. Flooding this precious resource makes no sense, nor does generating electricity for an abandoned LNG strategy, so your government will cancel the Site C megadam.

      B.C.’s forests have been woefully mismanaged in the past years. Your government will implement a forest action plan to restore forest health and create sustainable forestry jobs.

      British Columbia has globally significant biodiversity, which is especially vulnerable to climate change.

      Taking seriously our responsibility to manage public lands for the greater public good, your government will defend our remaining intact nature, so that we may preserve biodiversity and natural carbon banks, and protect the ecosystem services on which human economies and health depend.

      To move away from fossil fuels and to fight climate change requires a strong local and diversified economy and investment in alternative energy sources. This will be a transformational change for our province and we cannot afford to be short-sighted.

      Fellow British Columbians. Your government has the courage to say yes to an equitable postcarbon economy that leaves no one behind.

      British Columbia has a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on its diversified economy, its unparalleled biodiversity and the diversity, skills, and vision of its workforce. Diversity truly is strength.

      Your government will defend the natural support systems that underpin our prosperity, build a strong, green economy, and secure a better tomorrow for future generations.

      Thank you.

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