George Read to run in Calgary Elbow

I will be running in the Calgary Elbow by-election! This will be a critical election for the Green Party of Alberta. I need your help to make it a success.

Come out to the Apr 22^nd Climate Change Carnival at the Lakeview Community Hall: 6110-34^thAve SW Calgary. This will be a fun event with a life sized ice sculpture of a polar bear, games, prizes and fun. This event will kick off the Calgary Elbow campaign.

There has never been a better time to be Green in Alberta. The political winds are shifting and Albertans are beginning to believe in a sustainable future for Alberta. When I think about the possibilities available to this province, I get excited. We can have a high-speed rail line from Calgary to Edmonton. I have seen the Oct 2004 Van Horne institute study that shows that not only is a high-speed rail line possible, it is affordable. Link to study

http://www.vanhorne.info/Reports/HSR%20Full%20Report%20%2810%206%202004%29.pdf

Economic prosperity and environmental sustainability go hand in hand.

Calgary Elbow will set the stage for the Green Party in Alberta. This is going to be an opportunity for the Green Party to talk about making Alberta into an energy province. We all know that Alberta is an oil province and the Green Party supports Alberta continuing to produce oil. But even the oil companies are shifting to different forms of energy! Look at Shell Solar http://www.shell.com/home/Framework?siteId=shellsolar and BP Hydrogen http://www.vanhorne.info/Reports/HSR%20Full%20Report%20%2810%206%202004%29.pdf

We believe that the province of Alberta needs to change the laws to allow Albertans the right to put solar panels on their roofs and sell electricity back onto the grid. This is a practice that is common in Europe, but illegal in Alberta even now that electricity is “deregulated”.

We also want to talk about support for wind power. Our current government is allowing a cap on wind power that is blocking up to 6 billion dollars in investment. Look at this article; http://www.wind-watch.org/news/2006/10/20/a-heavy-blow-for-wind-power-2/ Alberta needs to remove this cap! We as a society need to support and promote investment in renewable energy.

We need to get the message out there that economic prosperity and environmental sustainability go hand in hand.

Calgary Elbow will also be a time to talk about what health care in a Green society will look like. A simple solution like funding midwives and other caregivers can take the pressure off of our existing facilities. In a Green province, preventative medicine will be as important as bricks and mortar hospitals, doctors and nurses. My grandmother always told me that a stitch in time saves nine. If we can offer Albertans more ways to access medicine, and if we can expand the options for keeping people healthy, we can all live healthier, less stressful, longer lives.

We are also going to get a chance to talk about solutions to the affordable housing crisis in this province. Affordable housing affects us all. Limiting the number of affordable housing units limits the number of people who can come to the city. The Green Party has always supported plans to increase urban density. Increasing urban density does not mean overcrowding. It means more walkable communities. It means better transit. It means places where people can know their neighbours. It means taking the LRT home from work and being able to pick up some fresh fruit and vegetables at a local market during the walk home, secure in the knowledge that your house is not taking up any new farmland.

The election in Calgary Elbow is going to be a great opportunity for the Green Party to present some of our plan for the future to Albertans. I need your help to let people know that I am running for MLA in Calgary Elbow. Please support this campaign with time or money today.

George Read

Leader, Green Party of Alberta