Water Not Coal:The Battle For the Eastern Slopes

Against overhwhelming opposition clear across all political divdies Coal mining is back on the table in Alberta—and so is a fight that just won’t go away. Over the past few years, we’ve seen protections rolled back, reinstated, and reshaped, projects rejected then revived for no good reason and growing evidence of pollution risks that could reach far beyond the mine sites themselves. At the same time, something unusual has organically grown around all of this: strong sustained resistance from a one of the broadest coalition of Albertans we've ever seen: ranchers, scientists, communities across the rural/urban divide, conservationists, climate activists are finding common ground around one core concern: water. Because what happens in these mountains doesn’t stay there, it flows downstream to farms, towns, cities across southern Alberta and even all the way next door to our neighbours in Saskatchewan. This month on the Climate Lens, we’re very lucky to be joined by Kevin Van Tighem - writer, conservationist, and former superintendent of Banff National Park - to unpack what’s really going on beneath the headlines—and what’s at stake for Alberta’s water, land, and future.

Sources used in this episode: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gvTf1leSB_pHmkM692EKy1jIR_pt1hLD1zodirbpSxQ
Transcript of the episode: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bFRJPDy4jxbKdR2ti79xP5RKNjvlyaJmsynwSX6gIFU

Calgary Climate Hub Website: https://www.calgaryclimatehub.ca/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClimateHubYYC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/calgaryclimatehub/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/calgaryclimatehub/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzh9NWUmvSzpOsa7ReTs83Q
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/climatehubyyc.bsky.social
Mastodon: https://campaign.openworlds.info/@ClimateHubYYC
Volunteer! https://www.calgaryclimatehub.ca/volunteer
Become a Member! https://www.calgaryclimatehub.ca/membership