Forest City urged to join fight over old growth forest in B.C.
A rally in Victoria Park called on Londoners to voice opposition to logging inside an ancient forest on the west coast of Canada.
People have been camped out in the Fairy Creek watershed since last August to defend what they describe as the last unprotected old growth forest on southern Vancouver Island.
London-native Jamie Ranney has just returned from the front lines.
“The thing that touched me the most being there was just reconnecting with nature because you can get so disconnected in the city,” Ranney tells CTV News London.
Ranney joined members of Climate Action London outside the entrance to Ribfest on Friday to educate Londoners about the protest occurring half a country away.
And that the Forest City has an interest in the health of forests in B.C.
“We have seen already this year all the smoke that arrived here from the forest fires across Canada,” says Mary Ann Hodge of Climate Action London.
Logging company Teal Jones holds the license for the watershed, and has previously stated a belief that 200 hectares of the 1,200 hectares are harvestable.
Ranney says the old growth forest in the Fairy Creek watershed took a thousand years to grow, storing carbon from the atmosphere.
“The carbon that these forests store is unlike any forest we have in Canada, and certainly nothing like a replanted forest,” she says.
Tensions heated up this spring when a court injunction forbid protestors from preventing access.
The RCMP have made more than 400 arrests.
Climate Action London says concerned people in our region should contact their member of parliament.
Ranney hopes her hometown will step up.
“Getting the word out, telling friends and family about this is going to help our fight.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
King Charles too busy to see son Prince Harry during U.K. trip
Prince Harry will not be seeing his father King Charles during his current visit to Britain as the monarch will be too busy, Harry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
Liberal government not immune from auto thefts: 48 vehicles stolen in recent years
Documents tabled in the House of Commons this week show 48 government vehicles were stolen between January 2016 and February of this year, most of them in Ontario.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL has suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly at least nine games for violating the league's gender-based violence policy.