The Value of Human Life as set by Stephen Harper

Air pollution isn’t just harmless smog. Air pollution is a dangerous reality that affects our health, and slowly poisons our lungs and kills us.

The American Lung Association conducted a number of studies proving links between air pollution and heart attacks, strokes, lung (and various other) cancers, premature death, asthma, pneumonia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It attacks our children, our old, our ailing, and even our healthiest citizens, leaving us with ugly results: gruesome, drawn-out sicknesses that worsen our quality of life and make us dependent upon those around us.

Because air pollution is an invisible killer, it must be monitored by scientists who specialize in toxic pollution. Without them, we have no warning signs, no way to tell that we are being infected by harmful pollutants.

Instead of increasing the air monitoring, Harper is cutting a team of seven highly specialized smokestack experts, all of whom work to blow the whistle on toxic emissions and develop higher air quality standards within industry across Canada. Environment Canada’s Deputy Minister Paul Boothe admits the job losses are being made in part to trim government spending and government workforce by 5 and 3 per cent, respectively.

Trimming the workforce by 3%: that is the value of human life as set by Stephen Harper. More dangerous, though, is the fact that we don’t seem to think we can do anything about it.

If you believe that what you don’t see can hurt you, write to Peter Kent. We’ll show them we’re ready to fight the real killers...the Harper Government.

This is our letter to him, consider sending this one or write your own. To learn why snail mail is so effective, check out this link: http://www.ted.com/talks/omar_ahmad_political_change_with_pen_and_paper.html

The Honourable Peter Kent
Minister of the Environment
401 Confederation Building
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A6
Canada

I don’t want to die. I don’t want to get asthma, or lung cancer, or have a stroke or heart attack. But your decision to cut Environment Canada’s seven smokestack specialists threatens my health, and the health of all Canadians.

Toxic emissions and particle pollution are linked to the diseases I listed above, but they’re also linked to premature death, asthma, pneumonia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, says The American Lung Association. Todd Panas (Union of Environment Workers) has noted the connection between carcinogens in the air and different types of cancer. The National Geographic points to the contaminating effects of air pollution on our eco and water systems. These are risks I do not want to see my government take. Even you yourself, Mr. Kent, have acceded that your department’s scientific expertise and ability to protect our country is at risk.

I am therefore asking you, Mr. Kent, to reverse the decision to fire these specialists. It is vitally important to me and my community that we maintain these core environmental services, performed by the same skilled, government employees, working to improve industry standards and limit toxic emissions across our country. These scientists are also necessary to your new clean energy funding program. Without these scientists, the government cannot effectively implement the program. Finally, to cut these workers without fully analyzing the services the team provides, and without sufficiently consulting the scientists and stakeholders, is unacceptable.

I look forward to seeing my interests and concerns put into action. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,