Wednesday September 8: All Candidates Debate on the environment

York-Simcoe candidates in the federal election will debate matters related to the environment on Wednesday, September 8th, from 7 – 8:30 PM.

The Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition is co-hosting this debate, online on Zoom. Media are invited to attend! Registration is required via this link https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMkcu6rrDMjGdI98L6UgZWSo0XWnTUcKN2Y

There are 100 debates on the environment occurring all over Canada. Find your local event and register here: https://www.100debates.ca/debates

The format of 100 debates is mostly the same across Canada, with candidates being asked questions about climate, pandemic and job recovery, toxics, Indigenous rights, and protecting nature. There will also be questions asked about the Bradford Bypass and reducing phosphorus pollution to Lake Simcoe.

The riding of York Simcoe covers Georgina, Bradford West Gwillimbury and East Gwillimbury.

The Federal candidates in York-Simcoe are:
Conservative: Scot Davidson MP
Green: Phil DeRosiers
Liberal: Daniella Johnson
NDP: Benjamin Jenkins

The Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition’s priorities for all Lake Simcoe candidates are:

• Reach the Federal 30% land protection target in the Lake Simcoe watershed with a mix of investments in land, partnerships with the province of Ontario, and support for Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area.
• Designate the Bradford Bypass for a full Federal Impact Assessment.
• Make good on repeated promises to invest $30 – $40 million in Lake Simcoe through a renewed Lake Simcoe Clean Up Fund. Strategically support remediation, particularly wetland protection, green infrastructure projects, shoreline greening, and urban stormwater retrofits.
• Build the phosphorus reclamation plant on the East Holland River regardless of the outcome of the Upper York Sewage Solution decision. A cost-sharing agreement with the province of Ontario to build the phosphorus reclamation plant should be drawn up, with the Region of York covering the cost of operating the plant.
• Support the rapid building of public transit projects that move people away from single-occupancy vehicle commuting patterns.
• Build affordable housing where transit access is feasible and where intensification is needed to achieve existing transit viability.
• Invest in urban greenspace forest canopy protection to reduce the heat island effect, which disproportionately affects lower-income people and seniors.

To read the Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition’s full set of priorities: RLSC federal priorities 2021

Three other online debates will take place in Simcoe County on September 8 to ensure that climate and environmental issues are front and center:
Barrie-Innisfil: 7 – 9 PM Register here
Simcoe Grey:7 – 9 PM Register here
Barrie-Springwater-Oro Medonte: 1 – 2:15 PM Register here

For more information about the York-Simcoe debate, please contact Claire Malcolmson at 647-267-7572 or rescuelakesimcoecoalition@gmail.com
Barrie-Innisfil Contact: Innisfil ideaLAB & Library, Jennifer Murley (she/her), Community Engagement Coordinator, jmurley@innisfilidealab.ca, 705-431-7410 Ext. 5224
Simcoe-Grey Contact: Collingwood Climate Action Team, Ruth Plant, collingwoodclimateaction@gmail.com, 705-606-9653
Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte Contact: Simcoe County Greenbelt Coalition, Kelly Gingrich (she/her), kelly@simcoecountygreenbelt.ca