Nunavut Green Party candidate takes aim at Aglukkaq on climate change

Nunavut's Green Partycandidate hopes Northerners will think about the environment when they hit the ballot box.

Spencer Rocchi accusesthe Conservative Partyof denyingthe science of climate change.

"This is what we are seeing, it's objective and verifiable by science and is something we just really need to be turning onto right now," Rocchisaid.

Conservative candidate Leona Aglukkaq says during her time as Canada's Environment Minister her government did take steps to address climate change.

"I've recently announced our new targets that we are going to move forward with and addressing other sectors that we also want to regulate to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," she said.

Rocchi says Aglukkaq's position is little more than pandering. And he says the government's commitment to the environment should be measured in actions. He points to concerns around Aglukkaq's decision in a recent application by Shell for a drilling project off Nova Scotia.

Rocchi says Nunavut is already experiencing the brunt of climate change and weakened environmental protectionsmean conditions will only get worse.

In May, Aglukkaq announced Canada would seek to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, through regulations on vehicle emissions. The new regulations would also cut methane from oil and gas production, natural-gas-fired electricity, chemicals and fertilizer production.

But Aglukkaq has also drawn criticism for her handling of the file, including a 2013 interview where she called the science of climate change "debatable."