In this edition of EcoNews, our Fundy Baykeeper joins other leading ENGOs and fisheries associations in N.B. to call for a full Environmental Impact Assessment as a salmon farming company looks to expand its operations in the Bay of Fundy; our Executive Director shares with you her top webinar picks of the first 100+ days of social distancing, and brings a great rundown of an exciting new report calling for a Canada-wide green recovery; we invite you to check out a fantastic new campaign for seniors looking to give back; we bring you the tools to better prepare for (and talk about) climate change in New Brunswick; and, we reiterate our support for our Indigenous and Black neighbours in the struggle to end systemic racism in society.
Fundy Baykeeper, ENGOs, Fishermen Associations call for EIA of proposed new salmon aquaculture sites in Bay of Fundy
Our Fundy Baykeeper, Matt Abbott, has co-signed a letter with other leading New Brunswick environmental groups and fisheries associations calling on the provincial government to complete a full Environmental Impact Assessment of proposed new open-net pen salmon aquaculture sites in the Bay of Fundy. The proposed new sites are not registered to undergo an EIA. As the Baykeeper and other signatories say in their letter to Minister Jeff Carr, the existing impact of farmed salmon on wild stocks in the Bay of Fundy, and the sites’ proximity to important migratory and nesting bird shoreline should trigger a full EIA. 
Conservation Council featured in new Seniors Giving Back campaign!
A group of community-minded seniors is encouraging their peers to give back to Canadian charities amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Seniors Giving Back campaign launched just one week ago and has already raised nearly $60,000 for Canadian charities! The founders encourage seniors who have not been significantly impacted financially by the pandemic to donate all or part of the one-time, tax-free $300 payment from the federal government to a non-profit charity through CanadaHelps. You can find the list of participating charities, including your Conservation Council (scroll down near the bottom) here!
Conservation Council joins call for green recovery Canada-wide
Your Conservation Council has signed on to a new report that provides strong recommendations to Canada’s federal government on how it can ensure its post COVID-19 economic recovery funding will create good, green jobs, protect nature and drive down carbon pollution. The report from Canadian-based International Institute for Sustainable Development, Green Strings: Principles and conditions for a green recovery from COVID-19, includes recommendations such as supporting only companies that plan to be net-zero by 2050, ensuring funds go toward good jobs and stability, not executives and shareholders, and strengthening nature protection policies during recovery. Read all seven guiding principles, and the full report in both official languages, at the link below.
Our Executive Director shares her top webinar picks of the pandemic
The 100+ days of pandemic isolation has served up lots of worry, new fears, and frankly, really bizarre social media newsfeeds. But our Executive Director, Lois Corbett, has rounded up for you a much-needed antidote for times like these: a series of thought-provoking webinars steeped in fact-based analysis, best practice solutions and top drawer advice from some of the brightest, most caring and dedicated minds across Canada. Check out the link below for Lo’s top webinar picks to get you motivated and inspired as we work, collectively, to build back #BetterThanNormal.
New resources at our climate action hub, For the Love of NB
Looking for the tools to better prepare yourself for the effects of climate change? Want to know more about the fundamentals of climate change, why it’s happening, and what it will mean for us in New Brunswick? Whether you are just getting familiar with the reality of climate change or are a veteran community activist, our new climate change hub, For the Love of NB, is full of resources to help you be part of the solution in building a more sustainable and fair world.
In solidarity with our Indigenous and Black neighbours
In our last EcoNews, the Conservation Council issued a statement of solidarity with our Indigenous and Black neighbours as society, including here in New Brunswick, grapples with the reality of and solutions to end systemic racism and police injustice toward people of colour. In case you missed it, you can read the full statement at the link below. Our team continues to listen to Indigenous communities and make changes in our organization to ensure we are part of the solution to ending systemic racism in New Brunswick and better understand the connection between environmental degradation and inequality.
Thank you for reading.
