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To: Minister Davis
From: David Ellis, Port Rexton member of our Avalon Chapter Dear Minister Davis, I have just read your comments on the recent IPCC report in the Telegram and am concerned that this province is not taking our Climate Crisis seriously. Apart from the usual platitudes and saying we are going to reach net zero by 2050, there is no urgency in your comments, and it seems to be the same old path of supporting and subsidizing the oil and gas sector to the expense of the planet and all that live on it. There is no balancing to be done - we need strong leadership and a firm plan to move the province forward in reducing GHC emissions in the very near future. This means phasing out oil and gas production sooner rather than later, an immediate start to a Just Transition for sector workers, and a halt to hanging on the coattails of an industry that has denied, lied and deliberately acted to cause harm to our environment with the sole aim of maximizing their profit for the last 60 years. We can not continue to condone this egregious action any longer. Besides the urgent adoption of a short term phase out of oil and gas production there is much that con be done to mitigate GHC emissions as indicated by your now outdated "the Way Forward". Your government's actions must match the severity of the crisis which will rapidly impact the whole planet on a far greater scale - communities and countries spontaneously bursting into flames is just the beginning. It takes leadership to make the difficult decisions that must be taken immediately. The people of this province must be told how dire the situation is and will become, in order to bring them on board - to realistically increasing gas prices, for example. How can we be selling so many new gas-guzzling trucks when the planet is burning? Apart from creating disincentives, we need to offer alternatives like a properly funded mass transit system and further incentives to buy EVs. You have moved some way with this but you need to be bolder. As well as the few GHC reduction projects under way it is excellent to encourage the public to do what they can. But turning off the lights is not going to get us there! We need to move faster with more urgency and you need to make the difficult decisions to wean us off from an oil and gas industry which we have allowed to become a crutch to our economy for the past twenty years - because it was the easy way. Be radical. Put the planet first, not the oil and gas executives and shareholders. You can not put a price on this planet. It is the only one we have. Regards, David Ellis Port Rexton
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