Caring for the environment is a core Canadian value.
Stephen Harper refuses to take real action on climate change.
On the environment, Canadians Care. Harper does not.
January 2006: The same week he was elected, Harpers' government quietly met for two days in Houston Texas, with their US counterparts and oil industry executives. The apparent purpose of the meeting? Canada committing to a five-fold expansion in oil sands production in a "relatively short time span".
April 13, 2006: Three months after his election, Harper quietly cancelled fifteen federal programs meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This announcement was made on a Thursday afternoon before the Easter long weekend, presumably in an effort to sweep this important policy shift under the carpet.
April 25, 2006: Rona Ambrose announces to reporters that Canada now supports the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate - an alternative to the Kyoto Protocol championed by George Bush that lacks any mandatory emission targets and is widely ridiculed by the environmental community.
May 2, 2006: The Conservatives' first federal budget fails to even mention the Kyoto Protocol to control greenhouse gas emissions.
May 10, 2006: Minister Rona Ambrose tells Parliament that Canada had "no hope" of reaching the reductions of greenhouse gases Canada committed to under Kyoto.
October 19, 2006: The "Clean Air Act" is introduced to Parliament. It is widely criticized as far too weak, lacking any mechanisms to cap carbon emissions until at least 2020.
November 12, 2006: Rona Ambrose represents Canada at a UN conference in Nairobi to combat climate change. Her message to the world? "We are on track to meet all of our obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, but not the target."
So absurd was this position that it was difficult for Canadian environmentalists attending the Nairobi conference to keep a civil tongue in their head. "What kind of misleading nonsense is this?" demanded Steven Guilbeault, the climate critic from Greenpeace - a member of the environmental community from whom Mr. Harper is now apparently seeking counsel.
November 30, 2006: Mr. Harper axes a further five climate change programs at Agriculture Canada, bizarrely asking the soon-to-be-redundant public servants to help with media spin control. Approximately 10 per cent of Canada's greenhouse gases come from agriculture.
January 19, 2007: Harper announces his "new" green energy program, which appears to be a re-tread of a Liberal program cancelled by the Conservatives last year.
“The issue of climate change is one that we ignore at our own peril. There may still be disputes about exactly how much we're contributing to the warming of the earth's atmosphere and how much is naturally occurring, but what we can be scientifically certain of is that our continued use of fossil fuels is pushing us to a point of no return. And unless we free ourselves from a dependence on these fossil fuels and chart a new course on energy in this country, we are condemning future generations to global catastrophe.”
“Our nation has both an obligation and self-interest in facing head-on the serious environmental, economic and national security threat posed by global warming.”
“I think that it's great that the NHLPA [National Hockey League Player's Association] is teaming up with the David Suzuki Foundation to lead the way in tackling climate change. We have an opportunity to make a difference, not only in the communities we live and work in, but also to set an example for our fans to follow, all over the world.”
“We are all passionate about making real progress regarding the environment. By working together, we can help each other save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and pass the savings on to our customers. Sustainability is good for the environment, and it's also good for business.”
“Cheap renewable energy is not only critical for the environment but also vital for economic development in many places where there is limited affordable energy of any kind.”
- Sergey Brin, Google Co-founder and President of Technology.
“If we keep emitting greenhouse gases at current rates we will see bigger changes this century than we did in the previous century. The amount of warming will depend on choices human beings make.”
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