Flathead Endangered
 The Flathead River has topped BC's most Endangered Rivers List for 2009. The Flathead, one of North America's wildest waterways, is threatened by proposals for coal strip mining and other mining and energy development.
The BC Endangered Rivers list is produced annually by the Outdoor Recreation Council of BC. Read Sierra Club BC’s press release.
Canadian Geographic magazine calls the Flathead River Valley a “nursery” for wildlife. The Flathead is compared to Africa’s Serengeti for its richness of plant species--more than 1,000 wildflower species alone.
Sierra Club BC and other conservation groups are calling for a national park in the lower one-third of the Flathead River Valley, and for the rest of the valley and adjacent habitat to be designated a Wildlife Management Area.
The BC government says it has not heard from enough people that they support a national park in the Flathead River Valley. Please let the BC government know you care, and click here to become a Friend of the Flathead.
Alliance Romaine - Now’s the time.
 Time is running out to save the Romaine River, and Alliance Romaine is hard at work trying to do so. The BAPE (Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement) gave the project its approval in a report released a few weeks ago. Line Beauchamp, the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks, now has until the end of April to release her decision.
We are in the midst of huge petition campaign: we are trying to gather 10,000 signatures to present to the National Assembly. We will show the government that Quebecers care about their natural heritage, and that they are not interested in damming another river.
We are also planning to host a mock BAPE at the end of April. We want to highlight the flaws in the Romaine River’s environmental impact assessment and the BAPE process, while engaging in meaningful discussions about real solutions and real alternatives.
Alliance Romaine is always looking for new members and volunteers, e-mail us at info@allianceromaine.org if you’re interested.
Sierra Club Peel Region Group Wins Greenbelt Decision In Streetsville
 It was a long three-year process for the Sierra Peel Group but it ended successfully on February 12th when the OMB approved the Greenbelt designation and zoning for 26 acres of Credit River Valley lands at Streetsville.
The Kraft Mill property has an industrial exception zoning since 1965, allowing it to expand on floodplain lands beside a provincial fish sanctuary.
Read more about the campaign and what was learned about grassroots campaigning!
2008 Protected Areas Efforts Earn Manitoba ‘F’
 Manitoba Wildlands has released the annual Manitoba Protected Areas Grade and technical assessment. Its actions, or lack thereof, have earned the provincial government a failing grade for 2008.
In the year since December 2007, Manitoba experienced a net loss of protected lands. This marks the second year in a row that total lands protected actually decreased. No new boreal forest protected areas were established, and development intentions are proceeding in boreal regions without a protected areas network.
Manitoba has one third of the province’s regional system of protected areas in place – established during the 1990’s – but continues to fail to fulfill its commitments for protected areas establishment.
“Manitoba will be hit hard by climate change. We need urgent action in our boreal forest regions and for forest species. Lands planning, World Heritage Site protection, and protected areas before development are all overdue,” said Gaile Whelan Enns, for Manitoba Wildlands.
Are you or do you know a university student or recent graduate?
 Sierra Club Canada has an opportunity to:
- Make a meaningful contribution to the environment
- Be immersed in the most current and pressing environmental issues
- Learn from some of Canada's most experienced environmentalists
Our summer internship program has one position in Ottawa. The deadline for applications is April 17, 2009.
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