New Green Jobs Study highlights need to pass NDP Bill

HALIFAX- A new study released today by the Ecology Action Centre (EAC) highlights the job creation potential of green industries and the need for Nova Scotia to legislate environmental goals, including job creation targets.

“Green jobs are the jobs of the future,” said NDP Leader Gary Burrill. “The NDP introduced the Green Jobs Act months ago, but Stephen McNeil has failed to act. This new research shows how urgent it is for Nova Scotia to adopt this legislation and begin creating a framework for green job creation.”

The EAC report details six key goals that could be included in the renewed Nova Scotia Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act (EGSPA). The Liberal government is two years behind on updating EGSPA, and the existing legislation only sets targets up to 2020.

“Updated targets to fight climate change are essential to creating opportunities in the green economy,” said Claudia Chender, NDP Business spokesperson. “There are tens of thousands of good, green jobs that could be created, and opportunities for Nova Scotian companies. What is missing is the political will from the Liberal government to invest in the green economy.”

The NDP supports the call to reduce our greenhouse-gas emissions to 50 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030, and introduced the Green Jobs Act in the spring of 2019. The legislation would result in an economic plan to transform the Nova Scotia economy by 2050.

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