LAYTON RELEASES REAL KYOTO PLAN TO CREATE JOBS AND POLLUTE LESS
Ottawa – NDP Leader Jack Layton today released the party’s Kyoto plan, which is the first that shows how we can meet the climate change’s treaty pollution goals within the treaty’s timeframe. The plan would create at least 800,000 person years of work.
“Canadians are far ahead of our government in recognizing the need to pollute less and make sustainable choices that are good for the environment and our economy,” said Layton, also the NDP climate change critic. “We have an obligation to act, the technology to act and citizens want to act.
“It’s time to take a balanced view of our obligations to future generations, to whom we owe a sustainable planet as well as less debt,” he said. “Facing the looming crisis of climate change, it’s time we kept our promises to the planet and acted. Because we can create jobs and prosperity alongside sustainability if we stop talking about it and started doing something about it.”
The NDP’s plan shows how Canada can achieve a 240-million ton cut to climate-creating and smog-causing emissions by 2012, as required by the Kyoto Protocol, which takes legal effect on February 16.
The NDP’s plan has five main components, and is available in detail on-line at ndp.ca:
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Energy efficiency. Most of the jobs created are in the construction sector, through an ambitious yet proven plan to increase energy efficiency for homes and businesses. By increasing efficiency and retrofitting existing buildings, Canadians can live as usual but use energy better. Among the innovative ideas are model building codes, loan guarantees to home-owners and using funds generated through selling emission credits to help businesses pollute less.
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Renewable energy. To decrease reliance on fossil fuels, Canada must increase support for non-polluting renewable energy such as wind, solar and tidal power, and help coal-dependent provinces receive cleaner hydro power through new electricity grids. Among the innovative ideas are large increases in wind power use (about 10,000 turbines) and solar panels (on 100,000 rooftops, as was done in Japan). In addition, the energy created by large industries would be harnessed and used again through expanding the proven technology of co-generation.
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Sustainable transport. In addition to the NDP’s long-standing support for helping municipalities with public transit and improving rail, the plan shows proven ways to help transportation pollute less. These include finally bringing in mandatory vehicle emission standards, and joining with California and New England states to create larger markets for cleaner vehicles. New, cleaner cars would be made more affordable through GST rebates, ending the current practice of penalizing people who want to buy greener products.
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Green purchasing. In order to help create markets for green businesses and energy, the NDP plan outlines how federal government purchasing choices for energy, equipment and buildings can pollute less.
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Respecting taxpayers. The NDP plan would end current Liberal decisions to subsidize the fossil fuels they pretend to want to burn less of, and move those subsidies into renewable, non-polluting fuel. In addition, emission credits would be auctioned off – after fair notice – to large polluters to give an incentive to participate in the energy efficiency and renewable energy components of the plan. Proceeds of the market-based auction would be used to fund projects contained within the plan.
“We can make better choices that pollute less and help our economy,” said Layton. “Our plan outlines how, by making obvious choices such as working with California on vehicle emission standards – and using common sense, which dictates that if we want to use less oil and coal and more renewable energy, we should stop subsidizing polluting fuel and start subsidizing clean fuel.”
The NDP plan is achievable within a balanced budget framework. Last year, Ottawa recorded a $9.1 billion surplus and the government’s own numbers show a surplus of more than $50 billion over the next five years. The NDP plan costs about the same as what is currently allocated to meeting an artificial debt ratio of 25 per cent of GDP, or about $3.4 billion a year for eight years. This cost includes sharing half the federal gas tax with municipalities for public transit.
“Paul Martin thinks preparing for the future is creating an artificial debt target and spending billions to meet it,” said Layton. “We can meet the same debt target by balancing our books – and using the money we save to make our future a sustainable one. With the best fiscal record in the G-8 and the worst environmental record, it’s time we recognized future prosperity won’t come unless we start investing in making that future sustainable, and balancing the books.”
Layton’s plan also stresses the need to start work now to help protect prosperity in communities currently reliant upon fossil fuels. “If we’re going to protect our economy through the world’s transition to cleaner fuels, we’ve got to start now,” he said. “The union representing energy workers says Kyoto can create 3,000 net new energy jobs, but if Canada doesn’t start investing in this century’s energy we will see those jobs created in countries that are thinking ahead.”
Accordingly, a priority is placed on renewable energy projects being placed close to existing fossil fuel centres, and for federal government jobs to be located in those centres to ensure a continuing economic base. It also contains extensive retraining and income support. “We can dispel the myth that we have to choose between environmental protection and economic progress,” he said. “But transition to a sustainable economy must start now in order to protect prosperity tomorrow. After 11 years of Liberal choices, we’ve seen no such desire.”
In the 1993 Red Book, written by Martin, Liberals promised to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 per cent by 2005, but they have risen by 20 per cent. Despite endless Liberal promises, the OECD says we have the fastest rate of greenhouse gas increase in the industrialized world and are the world’s third-worst per-capita polluter after the U.S. and Luxembourg.
“Canadians need to know the image Mr. Martin presents of his party and of Canada is not supported by fact,” said Layton. “We’re not environmental leaders, just as we’re not peacekeeping leaders or a country that keeps its promises on foreign aid. But Liberals pretend we are, because it hides what they’ve chosen to do. I believe Canadians want better, and invite them to look at our practical and innovative plan to put Canada on a sustainable and prosperous path.”
