Hatters Turn Up To Support Water Not Coal Petition Drive

Alberta country musician Corb Lund speaks to a Medicine Hat crowd of around 150 outside the Arena on Sunday. (Photo Alex McCuaig)

Alberta country musician Corb Lund doesn’t mince words when it comes to criticisms of coal mining along the Eastern Slopes and the current provincial government’s position on tapping the black seams running through the Rockies.

But his harshest words were reserved for former provincial politicians who turned to organizations with ties to mining once out of office during an interview with during with the Medicine Hat Owl Sundayprior to speaking to the 150 Hatters in support of the Water Not Coal citizens’ petition.

That petition is seeking to stymy efforts of Australian mining giant Northback and its Grassy Lake project.

The crowd outside of the Arena on Sunday. (Photo Alex McCuaig)

“I’m not saying it’s not legal but it’s gross, it’s greasy as hell,” said Lund, singling out former Finance and Environment minister Robin Campbell who was named president of the Coal Association of Canada six months after being voted out of office in 2015.

Lund is also critical of former premier Jason Kenney who took a policy adviser position with Bennett Jones - council for Northback Holdings, proponent of the Grassy Mountain mine - four months after leaving office.

“Kenney, who was our premier and whose government is responsible for starting all this coal mess, he now works for the big law firm in Calgary that represents the foreign coal companies against the Alberta public,” said Lund. “Tell me that’s not greasy.”

But it’s the threat to agriculture which Lund says is the biggest issue with opening the Grassy Lake project and the potential to contaminate both the land and water of southern Alberta.

“We have a multi-billion dollar food processing industry in Lethbridge and this Grassy Mountain mine they want to put on the headwaters of the Oldman River is going to leach selenium into the Oldman River and could really affect our ag business downstream,” he said.

Lund said he just doesn’t believe proponents of renewed coal mining when they state they’re able to mitigate the negative impacts of the industry.

“The coal companies, all they want is the money they can get from our coal,  that’s all they care about,” he  said.

One of the initiators of the push against renewed coal mining along the Eastern Slopes that began six years ago, Laura Laing, said the stop on Sunday in Medicine Hat is the 20th in a barnstorming effort over the Easter weekend to promote the citizen’s petition.

Corb Lund and Laura Laing outside the Arena on Sunday. (Photo Alex McCuaig)

The third generation rancher from near Nanton warned the Grassy Lake mine will deprive the ag sector of water while contaminating the land with coal dust.

“This is the most critical threat our ranch is facing,” said Laing.”This is in the heart of the headwaters and agricultural landscape.”

While she said while coal mining in the province has been a proud part of Alberta’s history, “I don’t think it fits in our future.”

Laing stressed the net benefit to Albertans is limited with profits going to foreign companies from a product that will be shipped overseas. And, she added, one needs to only look on the BC side of the Crowsnest Pass to see the environmental contamination Albertans can expect to receive in return.

The Water Not Coal petition will need to attract nearly 178,000 signatures from Albertans by early June to qualify for a referendum this fall as part of a package questions which will be put to voters.