Environmentalists ask opposition to defeat government if Kyoto abandoned
New Conservative Environment Minister Rona Ambrose tells reporters that the country will chart its own course on reducing air pollution but isn't bailing out of the Kyoto protocal.
Photograph by : Canadian Press/Chuck Stoody
Dennis Bueckert
Canadian Press
April 13, 2006
OTTAWA -- Leading environmentalists from across Canada say the opposition parties should defeat the government if it abandons the effort to meet Canada's Kyoto commitments.
Canada can meet its emissions-cutting target under the Kyoto Protocol despite government claims to the contrary, activists from eight environmental groups told a news conference Wednesday. Under the Kyoto treaty, Canada is committed to a six per cent cut in emissions from 1990 levels by 2012. Yet emissions have risen by 30 per cent. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said the target is impossible to meet.
"We're calling on opposition parties to stop Mr. Harper's attempt to destroy what we've been working on for the past decade," said Steven Guilbeault of Greenpeace.
"You never know unless you try," said Joy Kennedy of KAIROS - Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives. "We're hearing nothing out of this government about what they're doing, nothing whatsoever. There is no plan."
Emma Welford, spokeswoman for Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn, said the government is very close to announcing which of the existing Kyoto initiatives will be cut. She denied that the whole plan will be axed.
In opposition the Conservatives vigorously opposed the Kyoto treaty, but they have modified their position since taking power.
Environment Minister Rona Ambrose has said Canada will stay in the Kyoto framework and is working on a "made-in-Canada" plan to cut greenhouse emissions.
Matthew Bramley of the Pembina Institute said it is still possible to meet the target by taking advantage of Kyoto mechanisms which allows industrialized countries to fund emissions-cutting projects in the developing world.
"No we're not going to meet our Kyoto target purely through domestic action. Governments have allowed too many years to go past, there's been too much inaction, so, yes we do need to buy international credits as part of our package of measures to meet our Kyoto target."
Welford said the government has not made a decision on whether Canada will take part in international emissions trading.
The Bloc Quebecois, NDP and Liberals all support the Kyoto treaty, but they would not likely bring down the government over any Kyoto reversal so soon after the last election.
The Conservatives are keenly aware of the strong public support for Kyoto, especially in Quebec, where they must make gains to win an eventual majority.
Policy analysts in the Environment Department are said to be working feverishly to come up with a plan.
Internationally, the pro-Kyoto forces took a blow last year when British Prime Minister Tony Blair appeared to predict the demise of the treaty.
© The Canadian Press 2006
Media Release – For Immediate Release – 12 April 2006
Federal Cuts to Climate Change Programs Hurt Clean Energy in BC
Cobble Hill, BC – 40% cuts planned by the federal Conservatives to climate change programs will hurt energy conservation and renewable energy projects in BC, according to the GSX Concerned Citizens Coalition (GSXCCC).
Following comments (28 March) by Prime Minister Harper that, “we’re starting from scratch” [on climate change programs], the GSXCCC has learned the Conservatives intend to cut 40% of climate change funding, possibly including programs such as the popular One Tonne Challenge, the EnerGuide program for home efficiency renovations and the Wind Power Production Incentive (WPPI or “Wippy”), which has provided vital assistance to the Canada’ fledgling wind industry.
“So far, the Harper government has only taken negative actions on climate change – attacking the Kyoto Protocol and the last government’s policies, said Arthur Caldicott, President of the GSXCCC. “But with California planning to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050, and the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers making similar commitments, we know that we can’t keep hiding from the problem.”
“Weak federal leadership makes it easier for bad energy to offload its costs onto the public,” said Tom Hackney, GSXCCC Director. “When coal-fired power gets an easy ride in the regulatory reviews due to lax federal standards, that means that, down the road, when the pressure builds to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the public will be saddled with the costs.”
The GSXCCC is a non-profit association of citizens committed to promoting sound energy use and planning in British Columbia.
For more information, please contact:
Arthur Caldicott, GSXCCC President: (250) 743-5551
Tom Hackney, GSXCCC Director: (250) 381-4463