Editor:
On Monday, Environment Minister Peter Kent explained to reporters “that climate change is a very real and present danger and we need to address it.”
With the next round of United Nations Climate Negotiations coming up next week in Qatar, there is no time like the present for the minister and government to affirm forceful comments with real commitments.
Already the planet has experienced 0.8 C degrees of warming, and subsequently we’ve experienced extreme drought, flooding, heat-waves and, most recently, the devastation of Hurricane Sandy which put climate change back into the public consciousness. This is what a one degree planet looks like, imagine two degrees or even worse. “Business as usual” from Canada and other big polluters are putting us on track for a four degree planet.
As Mr. Kent stated in his comments, the prime minister’s signature is on the Copenhagen Accord, an accord which includes a commitment to cap global temperature rise to a maximum of two degrees. Canada’s current climate plan will not get us there. Planned tar sands growth is slated to reach three times the size that the International Energy Agency has determined would keep us under that target. Mr Kent also says that we are 50 per cent there, but when Canada presented its emission reports they were chastized by the international community for their “creative accounting.”
The math does not add up and while it’s nice to hear Canada talking aggressively about climate change again, actions speak louder than words. It’s hard to hear truth in the minister’s words over the din of pipelines, tankers and tar sands expansion.
As Canadians, we have also valued and protected the environment, but this current government continually undermines not only our national policies, but is also preventing the world from moving forward.
Please let your MP know how you feel about this important issue as Mr. Kent flies off to Qatar to more than likely receive more Fossil of the Day awards for very bad behaviour.
Karen Barkley,
Banff
