Evan Careen · Multimedia journalist | Posted: Nov. 26, 2021, 3:20 p.m. | Article at Saltwire
A Labrador group dedicated to preserving the Grand (Churchill) River signed its name recently to a declaration about hydroelectric power that was presented to the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) on Nov. 9 at COP-26 in Glasgow, Scotland.
Grand Riverkeeper Labrador, Inc. (GRL) was one of 340 organizations from 78 countries that called upon the UNFCCC to agree that “Climate mitigation efforts must reject so-called ‘sustainable hydropower”’ as a solution to combat climate change.”
Roberta Frampton Benefiel, co-founder of GRL, told SaltWire she sees the declaration as a step forward in recognition of the impacts of hydroelectric developments, such as Muskrat Falls, upon the environment.
“It’s things we’ve been saying for a long time and it’s taken way too long to get here but it’s a step forward for sure,” she said. “It’s something we and many others put a lot of work into and believe strongly in, the marketing of hydroelectric energy as green energy and getting climate credits for it has to stop.”
Benefiel said the government of Newfoundland and Labrador has marketed hydroelectric power in Labrador as clean and green energy and is hopeful this declaration could lead to changes in that.
“They sell it as clean energy and get climate credits for it and funding for green energy projects, but it’s only green energy if you ignore all the consequences of it.”
Specifically, the declaration is calling upon the UNFCCC and all parties to COP-26, to “reject attempts by the hydropower industry to secure scarce climate funds to finance a new wave of hydropower projects.”
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Mega Dams create MEGA DAMAGE! Are you concerned about the Grand River and the impacts of hydro development? Follow our blog and stay tuned to the latest reports and studies on the subject! GrandRiverKeeper Labrador Inc. monitors what’s happening and will keep you posted on topics of interest. Follow this link. https://blog.grandriverkeeperlabrador.ca/
Our goal is to preserve and protect the water quality and the ecological integrity of the Grand (Churchill) River and its estuaries for present and future users and for posterity through actions of public awareness, monitoring, research, networking, intervention and habitat restoration. As such one of our key objectives is to bring awareness both locally and globally of the cumulative impacts associated with megadams that we become aware of through our research.
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