It’s no secret that many environmental groups are opposed to the Kinder-Morgan pipeline expansion and other large resource projects.
The Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of B.C. (ICBA) believes the majority of British Columbians want at least some of these projects to be built and have created a social media ad that says we should say no to the “no” campaigners.
“All we hear from is the 16 per cent, the small minority, the forces of ‘no’, the voices of ‘no, don’t do anything.’ It was time for us to show people what was at stake,” ICBA president Philip Hochstein said.
“The ‘no’ side just wants to say no and doesn’t give you an alternative. I think our campaign is you can have both. You can have a very good regulatory and environmental oversight and still do economic development and create jobs.”
The ICBA has created an online petition and is planning “yes” rallies to urge governments to listen what it believes is a silent majority.
But the “no” side sees it differently. Peter McCartney, a campaigner with the Wilderness Committee Climate, says the social media campaign is “trying to frame us people that are saying no to everything.
“I think what we are saying is yes to a green economy, a 21st-century economy. We’re saying yes to things like energy retrofits, renewable energy projects and public transit.”
– With files from Ted Chernecki
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