ACTION ALERT: Save Newfoundland's Sandy Pond

July 11, 2008

The privatization of water achieved a new height in Canada when Environment Canada announced that lakes would be used as tailing impoundment areas, or dump sites for the toxic waste of metal mining corporations.

According to a June 2008 CBC report, a total of 16 Canadian lakes are already “slated to be officially but quietly ‘reclassified’ as toxic dump sites for mines. The lakes include prime wilderness fishing lakes from B.C. to Newfoundland.”

On June 27, we got in touch to let you know the Council of Canadians is outraged that the federal government is allowing mining corporations to use Canadian lakes as dump sites. Many of you took action by telling former Environment Minister John Baird and former Fisheries and Oceans Minister Loyola Hearn that Canada’s lakes should not be used as toxic waste dumps.

Since then, the northwest arm of SecondPortage Lake and Tail Lake in Nunavut were approved for destruction. Public consultation on the destruction of these lakes was appallingly inadequate.

Newfoundland’s Sandy Pond is next on the list. It is slated to become a toxic dump site for Vale Inco. Environment Canada has approached a few organizations to make submissions on Sandy Pond.

We feel that all Canadians have a stake in the future of our fresh water sources and encourage you to defend Sandy Pond and the lakes in Nunavut by making your voices heard.

TAKE ACTION

Save Sandy Pond by sending Environment Minister Jim Prentice a message! You may use the sample letter below. Please send a copy to the Council of Canadians.

---

SEND YOUR LETTER NOW:

Subject
Recipient	min@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, Prentice.J@parl.gc.ca
Compose your letter in the box below.
Dear Minister Prentice, I am writing to let you know that I oppose the turning of Sandy Pond in Newfoundland and the lakes in Nunavut into toxic dump sites for mining companies. The proposal to designate lakes in Canada as so-called “tailing impoundment areas” represents the privatization of a precious public resource and will have devastating social and environmental consequences. As we deal with the impacts of climate change, mismanagement and overuse of fresh water, it is unconscionable to allow the destruction of entire bodies of freshwater for mining purposes. I demand that you protect our natural bodies of water by preventing them from being used as dumping areas for mine waste.
Name
Email address
Address: City/town Province/territory Postal code
Stay informed:	(Check this box to receive the Council of Canadians e-Newsletter)
Anti-Spam Test: In order to combat increasing spam rates, we've added a visual check our Action Alert forms. Please enter the words to the right in the text box provided. If you have trouble reading the words, you can refresh ( ) or choose to hear an audio challenge ( ) instead.