Mr. Speaker, probably one of the problems in the country is that politics get involved in what would be considered a very good idea.
Our party supports the marine protection act, although we have some reservations about it. Allow me to digress for a moment, as my critic area is fisheries and oceans and I would like to relate that to this argument. There is a bank off Nova Scotia's shelf called the George's Bank, which by the way and for the public record is not named after the member for Gander—Grand Falls. I mention that because I know he is watching and listening intently to every word. The Americans have put an oil and gas moratorium on their side of the George's Bank to the year 2012.
This is a prime fishing area for all the east coast. Although it has not been accepted and there will be hearings and reviews of it, Canada is considering the possibility of allowing a discussion of oil and gas drilling within the George's Bank, one of the prime fishing areas of the world if not off the coast of Canada.
For us to even consider having a review, talking to companies like Shell, Mobil, PetroCan or whatever is unbelievable. We should not try in any way, shape or form to destroy a resource to exploit another resources. By the way, the resource we are talking about in the fishing industry is renewable. If it is done sustainably with an environmental message behind it, it can be renewable and bring economic wealth not only for future generations but for generations to follow.
If we destroy that and allow oil and gas drilling on the George's Bank, we will have economic wealth for our generation and nothing for the future, absolutely nothing for the future.
The problem with part of the Bloc, Liberal, Reform, Tory and even our debate by allowing politics to get involved is that we can only see in four year terms. I am a new politician. I know that politicians are a reactive bunch. They are not very proactive.
The hon. member for Churchill River in northern Saskatchewan is Metis. His culture and his people look a lot further than the current generation. The input they have on the land and the impact they have on resources is for future generations, not just their children or grandchildren but children hundreds of years down the road, so that they will be able to access and live with the species and resources we currently have.
We have some particular reservations about the bill. We would like to see some refinements, but it is not a bad bill in terms of what we have done with land. The current Prime Minister is very proud to say that he has produced more parks in Canada than any other minister before him. Unfortunately, as in the case of Banff National Park, we trumpet that success and then allow coal mining or strip mining on the border of that park for economic gains right now, but nothing for the long term future of the country.
I remind all parliamentarians and those people who are watching today that we are not the masters of the globe. We share the planet with many other species. For us to exploit a particular species to its extinction is a detriment to all mankind. It is a disgrace that we have a list a mile long of species that used to walk on this planet which are now extinct because of our short term thinking.
Marine parks just add to the parks in Canada. When the provinces get involved, they start introducing legislation which may allow discussions about entering into mining or development inside the parks. Call me old fashion, but my interpretation of a park is a park that we can share in, walk around, canoe in and camp in. It is not necessarily to play golf in, to have saunas, or to exploit mineral resources, fishing resources or to cut down all the trees. I would like to think I could move myself in space 500 years and come back and find the parks just like they were before.
That will not happen because we are looking at these parks and areas of our country and our world as avenues in which to exploit. There is a piece of pie out there and we will take every last bit of it and not share it with anyone else. Unfortunately we do not have enough parks and wilderness areas that are protected. The marine parks act will just move what we have in Canada to our ocean coasts.
I would like to move the discussion to an area called the Gully off Sable Island. Actually there is more than one gully, but this gully, for those who do not know, is a marine wilderness. It is an absolute explosion of marine aquatic life. We are allowing, I do not think with much hindsight, oil and gas drilling in the vicinity of that gully. They say environmental assessments and everything else have been done, but the fact is I do not believe they have done enough environmental assessments on the long term possible damage which may happen not only to that area of the ocean shelf, the Gully area, but other areas there as well.
Another area is the renowned area called the Flemish Cap. As everyone knows, especially the hon. member for Gander—Grand Falls and the hon. member for Malpeque, the Flemish Cap is a prime, pristine area of fishing resources. Currently, with acquiescence from our government and foreign nations, we are raping and pillaging that resource. We are using long term draggers.
It is funny that a senior official of DFO actually said in committee on the public record that dragging could be good in some cases because it turns up the soil at the bottom. I have never heard before that dragging a resource, where we exploit completely, rape and pillage the entire bottom, is actually good. It is good for very quick economic gains. It is very fast and efficient but there is no long term thinking in that regard.
If we are to protect the livelihood of fishermen in coastal communities, we require marine parks on all three coasts and within the Great Lakes waters so that fish and other species have a place to go to nurture and to grow. If we do not, there will be nothing left for future generations.
I find it a disgrace that we as parliamentarians can allow politics to get involved in something of this nature. We have to get it out of here. We have to forget the party politics aspect and start concentrating on our children and our children's children so that they can enjoy seeing what we see today.
I am sure, Mr. Speaker, being a very young man in age, you must know right now that things you saw as a child your children, your nieces and nephews and their children will not be able to see because we have exploited them. We have altered it. We have changed it for our specific short term benefit but have not thought about the long term.
My party and I are in support of the bill with some reservations. Some changes need to be made and we are hoping they will be made. We are hoping that the provinces, especially Quebec, would be very interested in doing this.
Let us face it. If we take away the provinces and the people, what do we have left? We have the natural resources that were here long before we were ever here. I do not know who gave us the right to exploit them and actually exterminate them. If we do not look at this in the long term, future generations, if we have any, will look at this generation and say we were a bunch of spoiled brats who just took everything for ourselves and left nothing for them.
I will conclude my comments. I extend our support for the bill with some reservations and hope that all parliamentarians will look to the future and not just to themselves.