[ad_1]
It’s time we propose solutions that put public ownership at the forefront as a primary tool in the fight against climate change, argues NDP MP Niki Ashton. Photo by Jinterwas/Flickr.
“We don’t want to be burning dirty diesel. We want to invest green energy and fight climate change. This is vital for our survival. Where is the federal government?” These are the words of Eric Redhead, Chief of Shamattawa First Nation. Like many Indigenous and northern communities, this remote First Nation is dependent on diesel-generated electricity to survive.
Indigenous and northern communities in Canada are already paying the cost of climate change. They are asking the federal government to collaborate in mitigating its effects by investing in green infrastructure.
The climate emergency is evident across the country, and it is becoming more apparent through its effects on Indigenous and Northern communities. Devastating wildfires. Record droughts. Permafrost disappearing leads to crumbling infrastructure. Further isolation is caused by melting ice roads.
Indigenous and northern communities have been the proverbial ‘canaries in the coal mine’—both sounding the alarm that climate change is here and telling us that urgent collective action is needed immediately.
We all know that tackling the climate crisis requires bold collective action on the largest scale. It requires a variety of tools, and must include public ownership to immediately invest in climate mitigation and adaptation. This is why I have proposed Bill C-245, an alternative to the Liberals’ privatization agenda that uses public ownership to support communities in the fight against climate change.
I am proposing that the Canada Infrastructure Bank (one of our Crown corporations) be reformed—doing away with corporate welfare, disastrous public-private partnership models and for-profit projects, focusing instead on public investment with priority given to infrastructure projects that will support communities fighting climate change.
We progressives have spent a lot time fighting privatization. However, it’s time we propose solutions that put public ownership at the forefront as a primary tool in the fight against climate change.
Canada Infrastructure Bank should be delivering for communities and not corporations, but it is failing. It is currently 35 billion dollars, and has yet see one project completed. What’s more, it has no particular commitment to climate action or Indigenous governance and reconciliation.
Bill C-245 aims to change all that and put into practice our vision for bold collective climate action. Canada Infrastructure Bank could do so much more. It could even issue green bonds, which would allow for the construction of the infrastructure necessary to realize the Green New Deal.
We’re running out of time, but we can meet our climate targets if we act now. Our government must shift funding from capital investment and subsidies to the fossil fuel industry to capital and support for a sustainable transition. Instead of giving billions of dollars to Big Oil and buying their pipelines – why not invest this money in green infrastructure?
This is possible through public ownership and the power to invest public money. We have the power to build a more sustainable, climate-resilient future—but Bill C-245 is crucial for ensuring that communities are given the tools and funds needed to implement these necessary projects.
Click here to join our campaign for Bill C-245 passage Here. It’s time we use public ownership to fight climate change. It’s time to put people and our planet before profit.
Niki Ashton is an NDP MP for the federal electoral district of Churchill—Keewatinook Aski in Manitoba. She was elected for the first time in the 2008 federal election.
