(Toronto) – In response to recent criticisms of Greenpeace by Canada’s Minister of the Environment, Leona Aglukkaq, at the Inuit Circumpolar Conference in Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Greenpeace Arctic Campaigner Farrah Khan declared:
“Greenpeace Canada has been invited to support the community of Clyde River in its opposition to seismic testing in Baffin Bay, and we have agreed to offer that support. Proposed seismic testing activities in Baffin Bay will have severe impacts on marine life and traditional lifestyles of coastal Indigenous Peoples. We stand with the community of Clyde River in their efforts to uphold their rights and preserve their traditions.
“We are being called on to support communities where government is failing to protect the rights and interests of its own people. To date, the concerns of Clyde River have been ignored by the Federal government, the National Energy Board, and the oil industry. If Minister Aglukkaq acted as a steward for the Arctic environment — as an environment minister and chair of the Arctic Council should — then she would be listening to the concerns of Northerners and acting on them.
“Inuit communities are on the frontlines of climate change and are now on the frontlines of the new Arctic oil rush. They will be the first impacted by seismic testing and oil spills and they have a right to be consulted and, when ignored, they have a right to reach out to allies to support their fight. Before any risky development is approved by the NEB, the affected communities must be consulted and give their free, prior, and informed consent, as agreed to in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, of which Canada is a signatory.”
– 30 –
For more information:
Diego Creimer, Media Relations, 514-999-6743
Note regarding seismic testing:
Science clearly shows that seismic testing can seriously affect the marine environment and the food chain of a number of species that are fished and hunted by Arctic coastal communities. Air cannons used in seismic testing send sound waves that can permanently damage or even kill marine mammals nearby.
Greenpeace Canada Policy on Indigenous Rights:
English version available here.
Inuktitut version available here.
Gwich’in version available here.
French version available here.