Nanaimo candidate forum emphasizes impact city has on the environment and climate
Candidates in Nanaimo’s municipal election are getting ready to turn their attention to the environment Tuesday night.
“50 per cent of emissions … of Canadian emissions are actually influenced at the local level. So the decisions that we make, relative to how we deal with issues such as transportation or home heating or, zoning and, the proliferation of industry within our locales, contributes to 50 per cent of the emissions that are happening. So it's very important that we look at it from a local level.”
Kevin Lindsay (right) at a Seniors for Climate Change. (Luis Zablah / CHLY 101.7FM)
That’s Kevin Lindsay explaining the impact local government has on climate and the environment, citing a report issued by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Lindsay is president of the Nanaimo Climate Action Hub (NCAH), a Nanaimo based non-profit non-partisan community organization that “seeks to advance solutions that reflect the urgency of the climate emergency.”
The hub is hosting an All Candidates Forum on the Climate Emergency, Tuesday evening at Beban Park Social Centre, for mayor and council candidates in Nanaimo ahead of next month’s municipal election. Lindsay explained further the impact local government has on climate and the environment.
“How we build communities and how we have to, get around and live our lives, the impact that having to be in cars and be, on the roads basically creating,more emissions, is a direct result of the decisions …we make around housing and how much we densify.”
Lindsay said the event will see at least 22 candidates for mayor and council in attendance, which includes the majority of incumbents elected in 2022.
“So we wanted to come to the community with a forum that would ask candidates to specifically address questions that are related to climate change,” said Linday. “We have most of the existing city council and mayor. So they were very eager to come and share their thoughts. They've actually had a lot of experience with issues related to climate over the last four years as decisions came before them that they had to, to vote on.”
Lindsay said a lot of other candidates for mayor and council will be in attendance as well. These candidates are those who applied to attend the event before the registration deadline of September 8th.
“Richard Harlow, Marnie Boers … Sarah Lovegrove, who's running for mayor. We've got, Brunie Brunie, who's running for mayor. We have, Jeff Annesley from REAL Nanaimo. He is joining us,” said Lindsay.
Other candidates in attendance will include those seeking a council seat: Paul Chapman, Andréa Coutu, Meg Fyfe-Watkins, Richard Harlow, Steven Johns, Cameron Lackenby, Mathew Miller, and Angela Waldick. Ian Thorpe, is the only incumbent seeking reelection not listed as attending.
The forum will be a moderated Q&A, and will be co-moderated by David Quigg, an organizer with the Sierra Club of B.C. and Brandi Klee, chair of the Vancouver Island University Students’ Union. Lindsay said while the candidates don’t know what exact questions they will be asked, they know the general theme, and understand that they’ll be asked for their views and plans relative to the issues if elected.
“So we've let the candidates know that the topics are going to range from, industrial, zoning, to active transportation, to climate justice, to tree canopy.”
Lindsay expressed what he hopes the forum will do for voters.
“I hope that voters come away with a very clear idea of who to vote for relative to the climate issues that are most, uh, pressing for them. Of course, this forum isn't gonna get into other topics that are also important, and there are, you know, many things that candidates need to be prepared to think about and, and work really hard on if they, wanna be elected. But we're making it very clear that this one is focused on the climate emergency.”
The City of Nanaimo declared a climate emergency in late April 2019, a decision that was approved unanimously by the government of the day, which included current incumbents mayor Leonard Krog, and councillors Sheryl Armstrong, Ben Geselbract, Erin Hemmens, and Ian Thorpe.
“Just this summer, Nanaimo, put out … its own report, about where we stand with climate and the most pressing things that need to be dealt with,” said Lindsay.
The Climate Hazard Mapping Assessment Overview Report was commissioned by the City of Nanaimo and the Snuneymuxw First Nation, and identified ten priority hazards impacted by climate change. These include extreme heat, cold, and precipitation, floods, be they riverine, coastal, and stormwater related, drought, windstorms, wildfire, and “mass movement” aka landslides. It also examines how these hazards overlap, and can make their impacts worse.
“So those are the things we really want voters to stay focused on as they listen to the responses from candidates, and then to be able to walk away and make decisions based on this one specific issue.”
Lindsay and his team of volunteers are expecting a crowd, with room for at least 300 at Beban Park Social Centre. While the NCAH has previously run candidate forums for provincial elections, this is the first time they have run a forum for a municipal election. Lindsay invited the public to come out on Tuesday night:
“We're hoping for a great turnout. And again, I hope people are patient with us. We are a nonprofit. These are all volunteers that are running the event, and we're gonna do the best we can. But we're definitely confident we're gonna have a great conversation!”
Voters wishing to attend the candidate forum should arrive early to the Beban Park Social Centre. The event will start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and run until 9:15 p.m.
Advance voting days will take place October 7th and 14th. General Voting Day is October 17th.
Further and future local elections coverage can be found here.
Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.
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