If the media were just a wee bit honest that would be the screaming headlines.
The cost of Kyoto
National Post
Thursday, September 27, 2007
More news emerged this week that meeting Canada's Kyoto-mandated carbon emissions targets would cripple our economy. While complaining that the federal government was overestimating the emissions reductions its own made-in-Canada greenhouse gas plan will produce, the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) admitted that the cost of meeting our Kyoto targets would be "considerable" if Ottawa attempted to achieve them by 2012 -- the year the treaty expires. Meanwhile, Statistics Canada reported on Wednesday that almost all of our increased carbon emissions since 1990 was due to the increased production of exports. And since exports drive our prosperity and standard of living, the conclusion was inescapable: In order to reduce our greenhouse emissions, Canada would have to curtail its exports significantly, a move that would cost hundreds of thousands of jobs and make most Canadians poorer.
While there were plenty of hysterics from some media sources and environmental lobbyists over the NRTEE's statement that the federal government "overestimates the extent of emission reductions," most of these same sources neglected to report their recommendation that Canada not attempt to meet its Kyoto commitments by 2012, for fear of plunging the country into economic chaos. Instead, the panel of scientists, economists and executives said "a longer-term national climate change policy framework is a more effective and necessary approach," which is exactly what the Conservative government has been saying for the past year.
Looking for the first time at the demand side of emissions, instead of the supply side, Statistics Canada concluded that nearly 99% of the increase in our emissions between 1990 and 2002 came "from the production of goods and services sent to international markets." StatsCan determined that emissions coming from goods produced for internal consumption rose a mere 0.4% during the study period, while greenhouse emissions released in the making of exports roared ahead by almost 50%.
That means that if Canada is to significantly reduce its greenhouse emissions, it would have to reduce its exports dramatically. But that would be financially suicidal for most individuals and governments.
All this serves to support the decision of Prime Minister Stephen Harper to sign on to the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APPCDC), while also continuing to participate in international talks on a successor to the Kyoto accords. While the APPCDC does not lay out specific emission-reduction targets, it -- like Mr. Harper's own clean air plan -- sets out a more practical, longer-term approach. And, it includes, the United States, Australia, China and India, countries that are not bound by Kyoto.
Reducing man-made global warming is a worthy goal. But as Mr. Harper clearly understands, it is not one that we should seek to accomplish at the expense of our economy.
SourceSo lets give Dion some slack. He did nothing about GW except possibly fork over billions of taxpayer's money to Russia for credits, inadvertently saving Canada from a deep recession. If not bankruptcy.
If you do not know what you are doing it's best to ask Stephen for advice or just do nothing.
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