Greenpeace Canada reaction to the federal climate plan
OTTAWA — In reaction to the Climate plan released today by the federal government, Keith Stewart Senior Energy Strategist at Greenpeace Canada, said:
“The proposed increase in the carbon price is a bold move to embed the polluter-pay principle in Canada’s climate plan, as putting a price on pollution is an important piece of the climate solution along with strong regulations and clean energy investments. Working with allies like Europe and the U.S. to establish innovative ways to ensure this can’t be undercut by companies shifting profits or operations to countries lacking strong climate policies can help ensure that big polluters also pay their fair share.
This is a serious and well-thought out plan to achieve our 30 per cent reduction target, but we will need to do much more to fully decarbonize our economy, which is what climate science tells us is the way to protect our economy and ecosystems. Canada can’t keep pretending that we can solve the climate crisis while expanding oil and gas production and building new pipelines. We still need the plan showing us how the federal government will lead the necessary and inevitable transition from fossil fuels to renewables, while creating green jobs and ensuring fair treatment for the workers and communities currently dependent on oil.”
ENDS
For more information, please contact:
Laura Bergamo, Greenpeace Canada
[email protected] ; +1 438 928-5237
Discussion
Until Trudeau accepts that the oil and gas industry must, at the very minimum, halt its expansion - production and exploration of wells and tar sands - as well as creation of new pipeline - these proposed carbon taxes feel to me like money-generating vehicles for the federal government, rather than genuine efforts to deal with the climate crisis. Sort of a: 'let's go ahead and make more pollution so we can charge more for it'. These plans also fail to realize that destruction of wildlife habitat is not only inhumane, it contributes to climate change in itself. You can't plant a few trees around land you've decimated and pretend you've restored it. Hopefully the proposed taxes will be effective, every little bit helps, but if this is all he has to offer - apart from banning plastic bags, something my city had already done - we are in trouble. Trudeau seems sincere that he doesn't like seeing plastic cutlery on the ground, but I don't know how deeply he has studied potential antidotes to this catastrophe. The few ideas he has seem very limited in scope.