From John Nicol, a Niagara, Ontario native and former, award-winning St. Catharines Standard reporter & columnist now living in Spain
Posted October 9th, 2025 on Niagara At Large
Jim Bradley, when he was Ontario Environment Minister through the last half of the 1980s
Modesty probably prevents you from telling the full story, but Jim Bradley (the former Niagara Regional Chair, St. Catharines Liberal MPP and Ontario Environment Minister) who passed away this September 26th at age 80), being in the right place at the right time to enact much-needed environmental protections, had a lot to do with Murray Thomson (the late managing editor) of The Standard creating an environment beat for you, Doug, which you ran with like you were Usain Bolt.
Doug Draper made environment reporting front page news, which Bradley could hardly ignore in his constituent’s newspaper. Jim’s heart was in the right place, and he assembled a crack team of like-minded idealists at the environment ministry, but as much as I admired Jim fighting the good fight from within government, there are many people to thank for the changes, including (the late) Margherita Howe (head of the Niagara-on the Lake citizens group Operation Clean) and the gang of protesters she led.
We mourn Jim’s passing, but we must put it in perspective so we don’t have to wait for the next Jim Bradley to come along.
As the late United States Senator Robert F. Kennedy (1925-68) said –
“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.”
John Nicol, as many Niagara residents remember him from his many years as a reporter at The St. Catharines Standard, when it was still locally owned by the Burgoyne family
We can all protest, or make our voices heard, to help enact positive change.
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John Nicol
A Brief Footnote from Niagara At Large reporter/publisher and former St. Catharines Standard environment reporter Doug Draper – Thanks John for the very kind words at a time when we are still coming to terms with the loss of Jim Bradley.)
To read a Tribute to the late Jim Bradley by Doug Draper, click on – https://niagaraatlarge.com/2025/10/02/jim-bradley-was-remains-the-best-environment-minister-this-province-and-country-have-ever-had/
To read a story Niagara At Large posted on the passing of Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley, click on – https://niagaraatlarge.com/2025/09/26/niagara-regional-chair-jim-bradley-passes-away/ .
NIAGARA AT LARGE Encourages You To Join The Conversation By Sharing Your Views On This Post In The Space Following The Bernie Sanders Quote Below.
“A Politician Thinks Of The Next Election. A Leader Thinks Of The Next Generation.” – Bernie Sanders
Niagara At Large 
John Nicol speaks nothing but the truth. Doug Draper has always been a faithful and valued spokesperson for the environment here in Niagara, and few, if any, other journalists can say the same. Many many thanks, Doug. You saw the dangers of neglecting our environment long before many or even most of us…now let’s hope some of our local politicians are listening, at last.
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