Natural Spaces Victories

HUGE WIN IN THE BOREAL FOREST
The Ontario government announced this summer that it will protect half of the province’s vast, pristine Boreal region from development. The announcement makes good on Ecojustice’s longstanding demands that no new industrial development proceed until comprehensive conservation land use planning is  completed for Ontario’s north.

WHISKEY JACK FOREST SPARED
AbitibiBowater announced in June that it will give up its license to log the Whisky Jack Forest in Northwestern Ontario. In 2002, members of the Grassy Narrows First Nation launched a blockade to stop clearcut logging in their traditional territory – now one of the longest running indigenous land protests in Canadian history. Throughout the legal battle, Ecojustice has provided legal support.

VICTORY ENSURES INDUSTRIAL PROJECTS FACE SCRUTINY
In northern BC, a proposed gold and copper mine is threatening to turn pristine lakes and creeks into a mine waste dump. Worse still, the public has been left out of the decision-making process since the federal government refused to do a comprehensive environmental assessment of the project. Ecojustice has led a long battle to correct this flawed assessment process. We are now taking the argument to Supreme Court of Canada – a significant milestone for environmentalists, as this is the first time the Supreme Court of Canada has given an environmental group leave to appeal.

COURT ORDERS LOGING GIANT PAY FOR DESTRUCTION
After years of pressure from Ecojustice, the federal government finally took steps to enforce the Migratory Birds Convention Act against logging companies, which routinely destroy tens of thousands of birds nests each year. Logging giant J.D. Irving Ltd was charged for destroying a number of great blue heron nests in New Brunswick. Late last year the company lost its appeal challenging the validity of the Act and was subsequently penalized $60,000, with $50,000 going directly toward bird conservation programs.

Lara Tessaro
Growing up in a small resource-dependent community in Northern British Columbia gave Ecojustice lawyer Lara Tessaro an early appreciation for sustainable development.
Much of Lara’s work is now focused on projects involving killer whales, mining and sewage. In BC, she has fought to make Victoria commit to updating its sewage treatment and is currently fighting a similar battle for Vancouver’s sewage systems.