Candidates support action for the
Petitcodiac River

Fundy Conservative Party entourage suggests a
return to Status Quo

(Moncton, June 22nd, 2004) - With six days left to federal election day, candidates from all political stripes are lining up to promise swift action for the Petitcodiac River once the 3 ½ -year, $4 million is completed in the spring of 2005, all except three.

A week ago, the 13 candidates running for office in the three federal ridings located in the Petitcodiac River watershed were asked to make their stand public on 1) whether they supported measures to complete the ongoing EIA and 2) whether they would support swift action to restore the river if the EIA was to recommend this option next year. The three ridings of the watershed are Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe, Fundy and Beauséjour. The deadline for the candidates’ responses was yesterday and final results can now be seen online at the Riverkeeper web site (click here to read the final results).

Out of the 13 candidates vying for election in the region, 10 candidates indicated their willingness to champion the Petitcodiac River by committing to swift action once the EIA is completed, two candidates in the Fundy riding suggested that they do not support the ongoing EIA process and one candidate in the Beauséjour riding did not respond. Here is a summary of the results:

Moncton - Riverview - Dieppe

Claudette Bradshaw (Lib.) : Yes, Yes, comments
Jean LeBlanc (CP): Yes, Yes
Hélène Lapointe (NDP): Yes, Yes, comments
Judith Hamel (GP): Yes, Yes, comments

Fundy

John Herron (Lib.) : Yes, Yes, comments
Rob Moore (CP): No response with comments (supports status quo)
Pat Hanratty (NDP) : Yes, Yes
Karin Bach (GP) : Yes, Yes, comments
David Amos (Ind.): No, No, comments

Beauséjour

Dominic LeBlanc (Lib.) : Yes, Yes, comments
Angela Vautour (CP) : No response
Omer Bourque (NDP) : Yes, Yes
Anna Girouard (GP) : Yes, Yes, comments

“We appear to have widespread support on the part of the candidates for swift action on the Petitcodiac River”, says Riverkeeper Daniel LeBlanc, “which reflects well the sentiment of the people living in this region. After decades of inaction and millions of dollars spent on studying the river, a consensus has emerged in our community that financial support from the federal and provincial governments is needed to resolve this long outstanding issue. This is a very encouraging development,” added LeBlanc.

“What is worrying, however, is the suggestion from the entourage of Fundy Conservative candidate, Rob Moore, that after two decades of work to arrive at a solution for the Petitcodiac River, we should simply abandon these efforts and return to the status quo”, remarks LeBlanc. “This position seems to suggest that the candidate is out of touch with the realities of this region, since every single municipality and the vast majority of people residing in this watershed support the ongoing EIA process for the river.”

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INFORMATION:

Daniel LeBlanc, Petitcodiac Riverkeeper (506) 388-5337