Open up a Canadian newspaper these days and the issues of climate change and global warming are bound to be featured, more often than not above the fold. Many claim that the Canadian public is far ahead of its Conservative government in terms of environmental awareness. The overwhelming willingness to do something about global warming is remarkable, considering that this nation – the second largest country in the world – contributes only about 2% of global greenhouse gases.
Public enthusiasm seems to be finally catching on in Ottawa, where action on the environment is increasingly seen as a key election issue. The Liberal opposition, for one, is more than willing to confront the ruling Conservative government with an alleged lack of action any day. The Conservatives’ failure to support the Kyoto Protocol has attracted most criticism. Canada signed Kyoto in April 1998, committing to reduce GHG emissions to 6% below 1990 levels during the years 2008 – 2012. However, Harper has stated on multiple occasions that those goals are unattainable.
As mentioned in our January 24 feature about Canada, government will instead focus on setting ‘realistic’ targets for industry emissions reductions and on investing in renewable energy. The $1.5 billion outlay will be contained in the Conservatives' budget and will be part of Ottawa's efforts on the fiscal imbalance. The funding will be channeled towards the provinces as soon as the budget is approved by Parliament. “We'll be financing the same type of projects in all the provinces and territories,” Mr. Harper said. “Funds will be available equitably, fairly, but solutions have to be conceived in each of the provinces.” Those solutions should be sought in clean energy, energy saving and curbing pollution.
