Speaking notes for the
Honourable Stephane Dion, P.C., M.P. Minister
of the Environment at Carleton University
Speech delivered by the
Hon. Stéphane Dion P.C., M.P., Minister
of the Environment
Check against delivery
15/02/2005 - More than ever, the environment
is a priority for Canadians. We are asking
our governments to redouble their efforts
to clean up the air that we breathe and
the water that we drink and to do a better
job protecting the flora and fauna of this
great land. We want them to help us reduce
our greenhouse gas emissions so that we
can lighten the impact we are leaving on
the planet’s climate during this century.
Growing numbers of Canadians understand
that this heightened environmental effort
is needed to ensure not only our quality
of life and that of our children and future
generations, but also the very competitiveness
of our economy. Indeed, it is becoming increasingly
clear that in this new century, the most
cost-effective technologies are very often
the least-polluting and the least resource-wasting.
We are seeing the intensive search for greener
production methods pay off in a new, cutting-edge
form of entrepreneurship and a very dynamic
market. It is plain to see that our companies
must respond to consumers’ increased demand
for healthy and more environmentally-friendly
products.
In other words, we Canadians love our natural
environment for itself – for its spectacular
beauty – but at the same time, we care about
what it gives us, in terms of quality of
life and economic prosperity. Because we
have such an abundance of natural resources,
we have come to tolerate some pretty wasteful
behaviour. We waste our drinking water because
the supply seems inexhaustible. We are slow
to adopt renewable energy sources because
traditional forms of energy are cheaper
here than in other countries.
But we are determined to put an end to
this waste and to take our place at the
forefront of the sustainable economy. Moreover,
as citizens of a rich and industrialized
nation, one that contains much of the world’s
submerged land and fresh water and is bordered
by three oceans, we feel responsible for
the fate of the planet and want Canada to
play a leading role in this regard.
From that point of view, the Kyoto Protocol,
which calls on signatory countries to curb
their emissions of greenhouse gases, is
not simply an ecological obligation to limit
the climate changes generated by human activity.
Kyoto marks an opportunity to transform
for the better our economy and our way of
life. Indeed, in the search for the most
practical ways of reducing emissions of
such greenhouse gases as methane and C02,
we are finding an additional incentive to
make our economy less wasteful, more efficient
and more centred on renewable energy sources.
We are also finding new motivation to adopt
a healthier, environmentally-smarter way
of life.
Of all the countries that signed the Kyoto
Protocol, Canada has the most demanding
target. A tremendously vast country with
a cold climate, a very industrialized country
that plans to stay that way, a major exporter
of fossil fuels, Canada emits a large quantity
of greenhouse gases - second in the world
on a per capita basis. But at the same time,
few countries can match our expertise in
energy exploration and use, be it for oil
and gas, coal, hydro-electricity, wind,
biomass, and so on. When it comes to climate
change, Canada is part of the problem, but
there’s no reason it can’t be part of the
solution as well. Canadians want to rise
to this challenge. They want to for the
sake of the planet,but also because they
feel that improvements in their quality
of life depend to a great extent on their
ability to become champions of the sustainable
economy.
1. New measures for the environment
Today, some ten hours before the Kyoto
Protocol is to take effect, I am pleased
to confirm that the Government of Canada
will respond to Canadians’ desire for a
stronger environmental effort. It has done
so in the past, as for example, when it
earmarked $3.5 billion in the 2004-2005
budget for the clean-up of contaminated
sites. But this year, the government is
moving with unprecedented speed to protect
our environment and quality of life and
to ensure that Canada is leading the way
towards the sustainable economy. We need
a project green for Canada.
We will build on progress that is being
or has already been made. For example, by
the year 2010, smog-generating emissions
produced by new vehicles will be down 90
per cent from the year 2000. It’s a start,
but more must be done to clean our air,
and we will indeed do more.
Already, the Government has announced two
new initiatives that will help us achieve
progress in terms of quality of life, the
environment and the economy:
The Northern Strategy sees the economic
development of Canada’s North as a function
of greater respect for its fragile ecosystem;
The New Deal for Canada’s Cities and Communities
will transfer $5 billion of the gasoline
tax for mass transit, sustainable infrastructures,
aqueducts and sewers as well as community
energy systems. The new deal will itself
be a green plan that will enhance our quality
of life and make our cities and communities
more attractive and competitive.
The budget that Finance Minister Ralph Goodale
is set to unveil on February 23 will include
many other measures that will contribute
greatly to improve our environment and our
competitivity in the sustainable economy.
I cannot, of course, tell you today what
these measures will be, but one thing I
can say is that their overall direction
will in fact be one of cross-fertilization,
if you will, between the environment and
the economy. That is the vision that the
Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Paul
Martin, has for our country. That is also
the desire of not just the Cabinet, but
of the entire Liberal caucus.
Another overarching theme will be partnerships.
We will do what needs to be done to mobilize
all the players. We will strengthen our
relationship with the provinces, with respect
for our respective roles. We will include
industry, environmental groups and the scientific
community. All Canadians will be invited
to do their part.
In so doing, we are going to position ourselves
optimally to begin implementing a number
of the environmental commitments made in
the Throne Speech.
2. A refined plan for Kyoto
A centrepiece of what we will announce
in the coming weeks will be, of course,
to strengthen the plan for achieving the
Kyoto objectives. Our 2002 plan launched
some worthwhile initiatives, but it can
be improved – and that’s to be expected,
since climate change is a new field that
we are learning more and more about with
each passing day. So we cannot content ourselves
to simply do more of the same.
A number of the measures from the 2002
plan will yield results over the medium
term. For example, a $75 million investment
will soon lead to a tremendous increase
in Canada’s ethanol production. This in
turn will lead to a reduction in greenhouse
gases within a few years.
But we need to do more. As greenhouse gas
emissions continue to rise in Canada, we
are straying further and further from our
objective, which is to achieve, for the
period from 2008 to 2012, a 6% reduction
in the volume of emissions in comparison
to the 11000 figure.
The improved plan that we will soon be
making public will position us to keep our
Throne Speech commitment, namely to reach
our Kyoto objective “in a way that produces
long-term and enduring results while maintaining
a strong and growing economy”.
This plan will be composed of effective
programs that are well-harmonized. Most
importantly, it will set targets for industry–
demanding targets, yes, but realistic and
equitable as well. It will employ fiscal
incentives, and it will help channel public
and private funds into ambitious projects
such as wind power and other forms of renewable
energy, C02 sequestration, clean coal and
east-west hydro-electric transmission lines.
In addition, the plan will accelerate the
commercialization of the best-performing
environmental technologies, and it will
rely on market mechanisms to deploy the
most effective solutions.
By and large, the plan will be carried
out within our borders. It will lead to
profound transformations in Canada, for
the good of our economy as well as our environment.
Our lifestyles will become less wasteful,
our industries will be leaner and consume
less energy, and our clean technologies
will gain momentum in all sectors. Our sustained
efforts to reduce greenhouse gases will
also earn us indirect benefits from an environmental
standpoint: like a decline in smog and mercury
emissions, better waste management, improved
biodiversity and healthier ecosystems.
But in addition to this action in Canada,
our plan will also use the emissions trading
mechanisms provided for in the Kyoto Protocol
– a system designed to encourage lowest
cost emission reductions wherever they may
take place. We will reach our target in
part by trading emissions permits with other
countries in the world. However, our plan
will very clearly exclude any emission purchase
that would have no effect on the reduction
in greenhouse gases. Only the purchase of
green credits will be recognized: those
corresponding to real reductions in greenhouse
gases. In fact, our reliance on the international
emission credits market will be designed
to provide Canada, here again, with economic
and environmental advantages.
From an economic standpoint, Canada will
take advantage of this to develop and deploy,
in various parts of the world, its know-how
in the field of environmental services and
technologies. It will seize this opportunity
to expand market share in the world’s emerging
economies and transitional economies. And
since the international greenhouse gas emissions
market is expected to grow in scale over
the years to come, Canadians and their companies
might as well learn right away how best
to succeed in this market.
From an environmental perspective, by helping
curb greenhouse gas emissions elsewhere
in the world, Canada is not only helping
the planet, but is helping itself as well.
A large part of the mercury emissions threatening
our health and environment come to us over
the Pacific, from India and China. By helping
these countries develop cleaner-burning
coal plants, we are helping ourselves. Furthermore,
we can use the opportunity to encourage
these countries to consider the advantages
of participating fully in the international
effort to reduce greenhouse gases.
Conclusion
That is what I wanted to present to you
today – not the project green for Canada
itself, but the approach or philosophy that
inspires it. This project and the refined
plan for Kyoto will be made public soon.
I am anxious to discuss its many details
with my fellow Canadians. And I am eager
to implement it, in cooperation with all
my colleagues in government.
We need this project green and this Kyoto
plan today, for the conservation of our
natural habitats, for our quality of life
and that of future generations, and also
so that Canada can be at the vanguard of
the new industrial revolution: the sustainable
economy.
