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NRSP Applauds NSERC Appointment

NDP misrepresent open letter to the PM from climate experts

Ottawa , Canada , November 2, 2006 – The Natural Resources Stewardship Project (NRSP) applauds the Honourable Maxime Bernier, the federal Minister of Industry, for his appointment of Dr. Christopher Essex of the University of Western Ontario as a member of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).  Professor Essex has made crucially important contributions to the understanding of climate change science; his participation in Council activities will significantly enhance that organization's ability to assess climate research in Canada.

“It is clear that the Minister recognizes NSERC's important role to “ promote discovery” is best fulfilled by appointing leaders in their respective fields to the council”, said Dr. Timothy Ball, Chairman of NRSP.  “With his advanced research and popular science writing in the field of climate science, Professor Essex is precisely the sort of scientist that should be involved in NSERC activities.”

Ottawa-Center New Democratic Party MP, Paul Dewar has issued a press release in which he condemns the appointment and says, “Essex was one of a number of signatories of a letter to former Prime Minister Paul Martin that denied climate change and lobbied to keep Canada out of Kyoto.”  

NRSP notes that the 61 signatories to the letter (which was addressed to Prime Minister Harper) gave no indication there that they denied climate change. As Carleton University E arth sciences Professor Tim Patterson, one of the signatories and an NRSP advisor, testified before the Commons Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development on February 10, 2005 :   “Based on the paleo-climatic data I and others have collected, it's obvious that climate is and always has been variable. In fact, the only constant about climate is change; it changes continually. We certainly have no chance of stopping this natural phenomenon.”

As can be seen in the scientists' open letter on the Canada.com Web site, the scientists proposed “that balanced, comprehensive public-consultation sessions be held so as to examine the scientific foundation of the federal government's climate-change plans.”  The scientists pointed out that they had “made the same suggestion to then-prime ministers Martin and Chrétien, neither responded, and, to date, no formal, independent climate-science review has been conducted in Canada .”

NRSP congratulates Professor Essex for this prestigious appointment.  We encourage the Government of Canada to appoint similarly highly qualified scientists to other important government bodies as well.  

The Natural Resources Stewardship Project (NRSP) is a Canadian non-profit group that promotes sensible environmental and natural resources policies based on science, engineering and economics.  We are led by environmental scientists: seven of these form our Science Advisory Committee, and another 25 are climate experts with whom we are allied. For more information about NRSP, or to set up interviews with NRSP participants, please visit www.nrsp.com or contact:

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