CITIZENS’ ALLIANCE OF PEI JUNE 25, 2014 Submission to the Standing Committee on Agriculture, Environment, Energy and Forestry of the Prince Edward Island Legislative Assembly

Citizens’ Alliance of PEI Islanders dedicated to advancing environmental rights and the democratic process

clean and high quality water for current and future generations……

Women’s Institute AGM 2014 Develop comprehensive water policy Moratorium on Hydraulic Fracturing Maintain the moratorium on deep water irrigation wells

that the moratorium be kept on high capacity agricultural wells Recommendation

 transparent  comprehensive and integrated  adaptable to climate change Water Act

Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation in Canadian Water Resource Management: The state of the practice and strategic directions for action With federal support from Natural Resources Canada’s Regional Adaptation Collaborative Program

With due diligence and transparency, develop a comprehensive integrated water policy for P.E.I. Climate change adaptation must be mainstreamed into all aspects of water resource management. Recommendation

 meaningful public consultation  comprehensive science  precautionary principle Water Act

The Canadian Environmental Law Association Precautionary Principle “if an action or policy has a suspected risk of causing harm to the public or to the environment, in the absence of scientific consensus that the action or policy is not harmful, the burden of proof that it is not harmful falls on those taking action.”

Establish a transparent and meaningful public consultation process that allows all Islanders to give their input, and be heard, on a sustainable water policy. The policy needs to have scientific consensus as part of a strong foundation, with an over arching precautionary principle. Recommendation

Environment Canada Website “Legislation and regulation are only as good as their enforcement”

Establish a strong compliance strategy for this water policy with focus on public awareness, monitoring and enforcement Recommendation

“ It is in the Provincial Interest to protect the quality and quantity of the Island’s water and ensure it is healthy and sustainable for current and future generations.” The Task Force on Land Use Policy

Thank you. Respectfully submitted by Chris Ortenburger and Cindy Richards