JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2008 ISSUE
Keeping Tabs on Ottawa and Climate Change
Unable to mount an effective counter to their weak climate change strategy, Prime Minister Harper and Environment
Minister Baird under the cover of their Canadian-made rhetorical smokescreen, spent the past few months jetting around the world in the hopes of convincing the
international community that Canada is a leader on the issue. In November, Harper’s meetings with the
Commonwealth in Uganda raised eyebrows.
“We don't need an international agreement that says Canada should accept binding targets. We are already imposing binding targets on ourselves. We need an international agreement to make sure the world will accept targets,” said Harper. The international community and media however were not fooled. British and African media were amongst the most critical as Harper came under fire for blocking a much sought
after draft agreement for developed countries to meet greenhouse gas targets.
As Canada's credibility waivers, Minister John Baird attempts to salvage his government’s position at the Bali conference. The goal of this landmark conference was to negotiate a post-
Kyoto Treaty. Meeting with representatives from two hundred other countries, the hot air from the Canadian delegation got even thicker, confusing and frustrating many delegates as
well as international and domestic observers.
“Canada is committed to developing a new international framework, driven by the science,” said Baird, seemingly ignoring the 2007 IPCC reports that called for prompt and decisive action. “Let me be clear,” he said. “Canada is determined to honour our commitments ... “Canada is committed to action.”
Respectable NGOs such as the World Wildlife Fund, were critical saying that the US, along with a very small group of nations including Canada are the very source of roadblocks in
the negotiation of an international treaty. France’s Minister of Ecology Jean-Louis Borloo was perplexed; “These countries have such capacity for change ... its hard to understand.”
Many wondered how a rich country like Canada could fail to meet its relatively minor Kyoto targets and then still demand that other economies adopt binding emission cuts.
Canada's hypocrisy is further exposed as it receives the “fossil of the day” award along with the US and Saudi Arabia. International pressure mounts, both the Harper and Bush
administrations finally cave in by accepting the “Bali roadmap” towards establishing a new climate agreement.
Ontario’s premier, Dalton McGuinty, struggling with his own province’s C02 reduction plans, perhaps said it best. In a letter to the Prime Minster’s Office, he wrote: “What Canadians
want their government to do is lead on this score and we're not leading - we're following. Worse than that, we're
hindering.”
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007 ISSUE
Keeping Tabs on Ottawa and Climate Change
Steven Harper extends his summer vacation and delays Parliament’s opening until October. This frees up some time to go up on the World stage. In September, he attends an APEC
(Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit in Australia which includes most of the world’s biggest polluters including US, Russia, China and Japan and then another go-around at the United Nations.
In these international appearances, one of the major agenda items was to stake ground and start building the framework for a post-Kyoto Accord Treaty. Harper’s basic script was to rebrand Canada from one of the world’s leading atmospheric offenders into an energy
and resource superpower who is leading on the climate change front. In his UN speech he emphasized the role of the free market in leading to technological innovations that will "solve" climate change. Tellingly, he did not emphasis the role of strong public policy.
Back home as the leaves fall, the Prime Minster finally reopens Parliament. In the Throne Speech, Harper indicated this his government will not abide by climate change legislation introduced and passed by the house last session. He has also decided not to follow through on the Kyoto Implementation Act or the Clean Air and Climate Change Act, but will cherry pick the elements that he favours.
Though he is on a collision course with Canada’s environment legislation with apparent legal consequences, he may get away with it for a while. The appetite of the country for an election on this issue at this time is questionable. The opposition in Parliament remains weak and divided, in large part due to the Liberal Party’s self-inflicted wounds regarding the leadership ability of Stephane Dion.
According to public opinion research, most Canadians still believe Canada should be aligned with the Kyoto Accord. A study in late September found that an impressive 81 percent of Canadians believe that the difficulty involved in reaching our Kyoto targets is no reason
to stop trying.
Canada’s commitment under the Kyoto Accord is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by six percent below 1990 levels. The current government plan is to reduce emissions by 20 percent below 2006 levels by 2020. Critics say Canada will not meet those new targets
until the mid 2020’s.
"Like the North Star, Canada has been a guide to other nations,"
Harper said in the Throne Speech. Apparently sometimes guides still
get lost.
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2007 ISSUE
We continue to “turn the corner” . . . and flop on the floor. As we talked about in our last issue, reaction to the government’s third climate change plan in two years, “Turning the Corner”, was largely negative.
Still Harper insists that “(Canada is) committed to taking strong and urgent global action.” Except that we won’t be meeting the strong and urgent global action required by the Kyoto deal.
Environment Minister Baird likes to fight and he jabbed
back in the media, but he failed to duck a combo attack
by two leading environment groups. First, Sierra Legal
asks federal court to force Ottawa to live up to Kyoto
(see NEWS). Then the Pembina Institute crunched some
numbers and charged that the government will not meet
its claimed CO2 reduction targets.
As for PM Harper, he avoids the climate change heat by
going to Afghanistan for some patriotic photo ops with
the troops and then over to Germany’s G8 summit. At
the G8, Harper positions himself as a climate change
"moderate", saying he is a bridge between European
pro-Kyoto positions, American skepticism and third
world developers. He also argues that Canada, while one
of the world’s richest nations, should get special
treatment, even though our CO2 emissions have
continued to rise and are now 33 percent above Kyoto
levels.
Still Harper insists that "(Canada is) committed to taking
strong and urgent global action." Except that we won’t be
meeting the strong and urgent global action required by
the Kyoto deal.
Harper flies back home, closes Parliament and begins the summer political barbecue season. By and by, Harper claims a Kyoto compliance law passed in late June is unconstitutional, as it requires the government to spend money they haven’t budgeted. Environment Minister
Baird chips in and says that while Canada will follow the "technical letter" of the bill, it will not come up with a new climate change plan, which the bill requires.
Because the Harper government does not want to enact legal, pro-Kyoto legislation, a constitutionally-flavoured court showdown in September is looming. This could be Kyoto’s last chance in Canada
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