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For information on Conservative policies on climate change, including international negotiations and domestic efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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2007
The National Roundtable on the Environment sharply criticizes plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as vague, using questionable accounting methods, and exaggerating the cuts it would make.
The report found that the 22 programs in the government’s climate change plan either overestimated the amount of greenhouse gas emission reductions it would achieve or had insufficient information to reach any conclusion.
A 2002 Quote from Stephen Harper on Climate Change:
“It’s a scientific hypothesis, a controversial one and one that I think there is some preliminary evidence for. … This may be a lot of fun for a few scientific and environmental elites in Ottawa, but ordinary Canadians from coast to coast will not put up with what this (Kyoto accord) will do to their economy and lifestyle, when the benefits are negligible.”
October 2006, Clean Air Act Tabled
The Clean Air Act is tabled and is denounced as an insignificant approach to climate change.
The Conservatives, having rejected the Kyoto Protocol, focus on ‘intensity-based’ targets through the Clean Air Act, which will actually allow for an increase in greenhouse gas emissions as the economy grows.
Which means that overall, Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions will be allowed to grow. The intensity-based approach calls for a manufacturer to become energy-efficient by, say, 10 per cent per unit. However, if the manufacturer made 15 per cent more units, total emissions would go up.
2007
Harper Joins the Bush-led Asia-Pacific Partnership, which is viewed as a cover for evading and undermining the Kyoto Process.
2007
Cleanr Air Act
The Clean Air Act would allow Canada to meet its Kyoto targets about 20 years behind schedule.
Dec 2007
A document written by Foreign Affairs and released to the public through the access to information act reports the following: “The scientific uncertainty surrounding the temperature increase thresholds that would trigger global scale impacts (i.e., slowing of the North Atlantic Ocean currents, collapse of Greenland and/or West Antarctic ice sheets), highlights the merits of a precautionary approach.”
Shortly after John Baird, the Minister of Environment, attends negotiations in Bali, Indonesia, and makes a fool of Canada on the international stage, by doing his best to undermine the negotiations.
2007
John Baird, on the assignment of Stephen Harper, makes an absolute fool of Canadians at international negotiations in Bali.
Mr. John Baird opened his speech with “I want to make it clear that Canada is determined to meet our commitments”. He started his speech by insulting the international community- knowing very well that “our commitments” are not the assumed Kyoto commitments. He continued with quite the slight of hand saying by 2020 we will meet a 20% emissions reduction from the current emissions but did not mention the base level 1990 emissions agreed to in Kyoto.
Dec-13 2007
After campaigning only on the internet for less than a week, Avaaz.org collects almost 100,000 Canadian signatures protesting the Harper/Baird stand at the negotiations and demanding that they adopt the concrete targets being proposed by the EU.
2007
Canada awarded 1st place fossil award, tied with the UNITED STATES at the Bali negotiations, due to Bairds foolish performance.
Canada scorches its way to the final first-place Fossil dishonours for its performance at the last two “Friends of the Chair” minister-level negotiation sessions—specifically, for NOT SHOWING UP (Baird apparently was too busy to show up to these meetings).
2006
Harper joins the United States and turn his back on Kyoto, despite overwhelming Canadian support for the agreement.
2005
The 3rd IPCC report on the impacts and science of climate change is released, predicting serious adverse impacts on the planet, including increased likelihood of extreme weather, rising sea levels, species extinction, and weather unpredictability. Shorly after this Harper backs out of the Kyoto Protocol.
Distortion, incoherence in the carbon tax’s wake
JEFFREY SIMPSON in the Globe and Mail September 26, 2008
It doesn’t matter how often proponents pledge to recycle carbon tax money into lower taxes on incomes and companies. It doesn’t matter how many economists argue in favour of pricing carbon through a tax.
The Conservatives have distorted the carbon tax idea and scared people. The economy would be “wrecked,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper says. Funny then that Demark, with a carbon tax for a while now, had higher per capita growth than Canada from 1990 to 2006: 36 to 32 per cent.