By COLLIN GALLANT on October 16, 2019.
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
Alberta’s three largest cities have extended a welcome to global climate activist Greta Thunberg to their council meetings during her upcoming visit to Alberta, but it’s unlikely Medicine Hat will follow suit.
Mayor Ted Clugston told the News on Tuesday he feels Hatters generally disagree with the Swedish activist, as does he about the need for swifter action to counteract a climate emergency.
“I haven’t talked to council about it, but my thought would be not to (invite her),” Clugston told the News. “I’ll listen to qualified scientists.”
The Swedish activist announced on the weekend that she planned to visit Alberta after Denver, Wyoming and Montana this month, touching off debate in this province where petroleum production makes up a large portion of the economy.
Related: Alberta government won’t seek meeting with teen enviro-activist Greta Thunberg
Representatives of local governments in Calgary, Edmonton and Lethbridge have sent out messages asking about the visit, of which details have not been released.
Two other city council members said they were not sure what would be accomplished by inviting Thunberg to the Hat, while Clugston said any civic declaration is a matter for council to discuss.
“No one’s ever asked me to declare a climate emergency,” said Clugston, who often cites his university degree in biology to argue that climate change is not as dire an issue as the scientific community says it is.
“I’m tired of people calling carbon dioxide pollution; it’s a basic building block of life … This needs to be dealt with intelligently and it is in no way an emergency,” he told the News.
Juliana Ford, a spokesperson for the Medicine Hat High Earth Club, which staged a climate strike at city hall plaza two weeks ago, said Clugston’s position is “not very surprising.”
“Medicine Hat is not a very accepting place to have a (climate) strike, because of the economy here,” she said. “It’s a conversation we’d like to have.”
She also said her group has attempted contact with Clugston and city councillors but hasn’t yet received a reply.
She doubts Thunberg would visit Medicine Hat, but members of her group are encouraged about the Alberta visit.
Thunberg’s call for young people to demonstrate on Fridays and general message has emboldened climate activists. It’s also garnered a harsh reaction from some in the community and others who dispute general consensus in the scientific community that the earth’s climate is warming at an alarming rate and due to human activity.
Her point is citizens and decision makers in government and industry need to pay greater attention to scientists, and consider much more aggressive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
Coun. Darren Hirsch said he wouldn’t object to welcoming Thunberg or holding a private meeting, but wouldn’t want Medicine Hat dragged into a “spectacle” to promote any agenda.
“Is she going to enlighten us beyond what we already know?” he asked, adding that city council would be asked to decide on the merits of the climate science, which he said is beyond the scope of city government.
Coun. Phil Turnbull said that a visit doesn’t make sense.
“She’s been to the U.N., she’s been here to meet the prime minister,” said Turnbull. “I’m not sure what more would be accomplished by coming to the City of Medicine Hat council meeting.”
Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman was the first chief elected officer in Alberta to invite Thunberg shortly after the announcement. He went as far as to include a photo of the city’s newly adopted official greeting, “Oki,” which means “welcome” in Blackfoot.
At Lethbridge city council meeting on Tuesday, an official motion to invite Thunberg lacked support to get on the agenda.
However, Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson and City of Calgary Councillor Druh Farrell followed suit on Tuesday, offering to hold special meetings for council to get her a hearing.