c02policies

GPS Convention 2002 Resolutions Adopted

2002.1 Promotion of certified organic farming
BE IT RESOLVED that the GPS adopt the following specific policies for the election platform for the next provincial party:

1. Introduce policies that will encourage farmers to grow the healthiest, most nutritious certified organic food possible.
2. Abandon the "agriculture chemical policies" of the previous provincial governments.
3. Devote agricultural research programs to soil improvement by using legumes, crop rotations and organic fertilizers to improve the soil, control weeds and pests.
4. Introduce policies that will develop self-sufficient farms and communities.
5. Subsidize the building of solar heated straw bale greenhouses at appropriate latitudes to grow vegetables in all seasons, particularly in the winter to provide fresh certified organic food, to create employment, and to reduce energy used in transporting food from California and Florida.
6. Amend the regulations governing the dairy industry so Saskatchewan citizens could enjoy unpasteruized fresh certified organic whole milk. At present we can only get this milk from Quebec.
7. Subsidize the growing of certified organic orchards of fruits that are native or viable to Saskatchewan, fresh for home consumption, canning, making jams, jellies, wines, etc.
8. Develop research programs for fruit that isn't native to Saskatchewan to adapt to this climate.
9. To encourage the production of certified organic food, we would serve it in all government operated restaurants, in hospitals, universities, technical schools, and school lunch programs for the purpose of providing the healthiest food possbile to students, patients and staff.
10. The Department of Health would appoint a negotiating committee to negotiate prices for certified organic food with representatives of certified organic farmers.
11. Our government would subsidize certified organic food for pregnant women, people who suffer from chemical allergies, school lunch programs, food banks, low income families and school milk programs.
12. Our government would establish a pollution tax on agricultural pesticides and other polluting activities for the purpose of paying for the transfer to the production of certified organic food.
13. Our government would establish a sewage corporation to assist communities in the province to irrigate from their sewage lagoons to prevent the pollution of downstream water going into other communities' potable water supplies where it is proven to be no risk of contamination to ground water or soil.
14. Our government would convert rural service centres from chemical farming information centres to organic farming information centres.
15. Our government would establish a subsidized farm training program to give young people an opportunity to work or train on certified organic farms to prepare them to take over family farms.
16. Our government would establish a water-testing program to identify water supplies that are not polluted with pesticide residues and other undesirable opollutants. We would also develop a program to protect the same water supplies from pollution for the use of Saskatchewan citizens.

2002.2. Controlling multinational corporations

BE IT RESOLVED that
All multinational corporations operating within the borders of Saskatchewan be required to meet standards and obligations which include benefits for Saskatchewan and its people and the environment, as well as be shown,
that multinational corporation, not to be operating anywhere else in the world causing suffering or exploitation of people as well as be shown not to be damaging the environment.
This act would be known as the Responsible Corporate Citizen Act. Those multinational corporations shown not to be meeting the requirements of the Act would be forbidden from operating within the borders of Saskatchewan.

2002.3. Opposition to free trade agreements and WTO/IMF/IBRD

BE IT RESOLVED that a Green Party of Saskatchewan government actively work against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). World Bank (IBRD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which are contributing to many of the problems of poverty and degradation of the world's environment.

2002.4. Promoting green energy

BE IT RESOLVED that a Green Party of Saskatchewan government would enact and promote policies that would seriously address the problem of global warming and climate change iincluding conservation measures as well as promote alternative green energy. As well, in view of the seriousness of this problem and the fact that time is of extreme importance, the Green Party of Saskatchewan act in such away outside of the government to promote activities that reduce greenhouse gas emmissions and promote alternative green energy.

2002.5. Promoting Local Economies

BE IT RESOLVED that A Green Party of Saskatchewan government would promote policies that favour local communities and their economies. Part of this policy would be promoting
decentralization of such things as food production and energy. This policy would also favour family farms over corporate style farms which cause damage to the environment. Green Party of Saskatchewan policy would empower local communities so they could protect their wooden grain elevators and say no to giant hog barns.

2002.6. Crown corporation policy

BE IT RESOLVED that a Green Party of Saskatchewan government would reverse the piecemeal privatization of the Crown public utilities by the Tory and NDP governments; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a Green Party of Saskatchewan government would pass legislation restricting investment of the Crown utilities to the province of Saskatchewan; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Green Party of Saskatchewan will continue to support the export and sale of Crown corporation technology and expertise.

2002.7. Student incentives

BE IT RESOLVED that any person who has lived in Saskatchewan and has graduated from a post-secondary institution will be entitled to a maximum, non-transferable $2000 tax reduction for each year of work following their graduation if they continue to work and reside in Saskatchewan up to the same number of years that it takes to normally complete their course of study.

2002.8. Use of natural gas

BE IT RESOLVED that rather than promoting non-renewable natural gas for heating houses, that the Saskatchewan government spend any future money, allocated for encouraging natural gas usage, on promoting retrofit on existing houses and incentives on new houses to promote passive an/or active solar heating.

2002.9. Support for class action law suit against GE pollution

BE IT RESOLVED that the Green Party of Saskatchewan actively support the suit by the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate against Monsanto Canada and Aventis Canada for compensation for damages to crops and markets by the introduction of genetically engineered canola.
The Green Party of Saskatchewan strongly supports the right of farmers to grow organic crops, the right to farm organically, the right to serve organic markets, and the right of consumers to eat food that is not genetically engineered.