City of Ottawa should welcome public intervention to protect the environment

Sierra Club Canada is shocked to hear the City of Ottawa is pressing a
community group for up-front court costs in the South March Highlands
case. Despite City policy not to demand court costs from public
interest community groups, a city solicitor is pressing for the group
to pay as much as $50,000.

“Moves like this impede the democratic process in the City of Ottawa,”
said Sierra Club Canada Executive Director John Bennett. “Citizens
should have a right to voice their concerns without fear of
heavy-handed reprisal.”

The group, South March Highlands Carp River Conservation Inc., is the
legal arm of a coalition of citizen’s organizations fighting the
extension of Terry Fox Drive through a sensitive wetland complex. The
group recently took the City of Ottawa to court, arguing the City
failed to obey provincial environmental law in a rush to secure
federal stimulus money.

“There wouldn’t be a need for this if the City had obeyed the
environmental assessment laws in the first place,” said Mr. Bennett.
“The City is acting as a bully selectively applying its own rules.”

-30-

Contact:
Robb Barnes
Communications Intern
robbb@sierraclub.ca
Sierra Club Canada
613-241-4611 x 230