Please! Please! Please adopt this new Environment Plan!
Liberals Championed Kyoto for Canada and then dragged their heels implementing it. Its time to get back at it. This new environment plan is the way to get there. I just hope they adopt it at the convention.
This plan proposes:
- The creation of a new national energy strategy to reduce gas emissions through energy conservation and more efficient construction and appliances. Canada would get a ''Climate Change Action Office,'' reporting to the prime minister.
- Immediate environmental assessment of the oil sands development to address cumulative impacts on landscape, water use, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. Tax breaks would be re-directed to other companies developing renewable energy and water recycling methods.
- Major energy users and producers would face mandatory emission targets within a year.
- Canada would adopt California's radical car-emission standards by 2010, there would be greenhouse gas emission standard for cars and light trucks while commercial fleets would face a mandatory 100 km/h speed limit.
- Consumers would get financial incentives to purchase energy efficient vehicles like hybrids, there would be a direct investment in freight and intercity passenger infrastructures like the Windsor-Quebec City high-speed train.
- Ottawa would reinstate programs like EnerGuide which helped consumers buy more efficient appliances and the much-maligned One Tonne challenge program would make a comeback to encourage conservation.
- Phase out within one year the 100 most harmful chemicals such as asbestos and mercury.
- Implementation of a national biodiversity monitoring program.
- An immediate ban on bottom-trawling in Canadian fishing waters.
This plan would make us greener than the Greens, and would probably get Elizabeth May's seal of approval.
Personally, I am ecstatic about the prospect of a biodiversity monitoring program (my reason d'etre), sorry Rona you should have looked out for those owls. Also, finally some balls on the bottom trawling file, sorry Loyola but in order to have fish, you need fish habitat.
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