<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=windows-1252"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;">Good evening GREN folk,<div><br></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">With a provincial election on the horizon, we now have an opportunity to show political candidates of all stripes that voters care about the environment.</span></div><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">Here are some sample questions to ask candidates be it in an e-mail, phone call, letter to the editor, debate question, or when a candidate knocks at your door. Use them as is or as a launching pad for creating new ones. Together we can raise the profile of environmental issues for this upcoming election.<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">1. Neonicotinoid insecticides have been linked to the deaths of millions of bees in Ontario, and are lethal to birds and other wildlife. Seventy-eight percent of Ontario voters want these chemicals banned until their impacts are better understood. If elected, will you support a ban on neonicotinoids?<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">2. There are more than 200 at-risk species in Ontario. This number is increasing every year, and includes once-common species like barn swallow and monarch. If elected, will you stand up for Ontario’s most vulnerable species and the law that is intended to protect them – Ontario’s Endangered Species Act?<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">3. In 2015 there will be a public review of the Greenbelt, Niagara Escarpment and Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation plans. If elected, will you stand up for these plans and the maintenance or enhancement of their environmental protection measures?<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">4. Northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire is rich not only in minerals, but also in wildlife and other natural assets that help to control climate, clean water and purify air. If elected, will you support an environmental assessment that recognizes First Nations rights and interests, ensures long-term community benefits from development, and protects healthy ecosystems?<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">5. In southern Ontario alone, the benefits provided by our forests, wetlands, lakes and rivers are valued at over $84 billion per year. These benefits include flood control, soil formation, water filtration and pollination. If elected, what specific measures will you take to sustain nature’s benefits for present and future generations?<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">Please join us in ensuring that the environment gets the attention it deserves in the upcoming provincial election.<o:p></o:p></font></div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3">For more information on the issues addressed above, visit the <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 204);"><a href="http://www.greenprosperity.ca/" style="color: purple;">Green Prosperity website</a> - <a href="http://www.greenprosperity.ca">www.greenprosperity.ca</a> </span>- an unprecedented alliance of 20 of Ontario's leading environmental organizations endorsing an action agenda for the province that can help to usher in an era of green prosperity.</font></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><font face="Helvetica" size="3"> </font></p><div>Cheers,</div><div>Kevin.</div><div><br></div><div apple-content-edited="true">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>-------------------------------------</div><div><br class="khtml-block-placeholder"></div><div>Kevin Thomason</div><div><br></div><div>1115 Cedar Grove Road</div><div>Waterloo, Ontario Canada N2J 3Z4</div><div><br></div><div>Phone: (519) 888-0519</div><div>Mobile Phone: (519) 240-1648</div><div>Twitter: @kthomason</div><div>E-mail: <a href="mailto:kevinthomason@mac.com">kevinthomason@mac.com</a></div><div><br></div><div>-----------------------------------------</div></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></span>
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