Speech delivered by
the
Hon. Stéphane Dion P.C., M.P., Minister
of the Environment
Check against delivery
17/05/2005 – Mr. Speaker, this morning
I met with representatives from a company.
It is an aboriginal company that specializes
in waste management and waste water treatment.
This company claims that it has the expertise
to address the problems created by municipal
solid waste, through total combustion at
extreme temperatures. Its process will reduce
operating costs for industries, reduce existing
large landfill sites and eliminate the development
of new landfill sites, and this, without
creating greenhouse gas emissions. This
system will reduce groundwater and atmospheric
pollution all in a way that will generate
electricity.
I have been Minister of the Environment
since last July, and not a week has gone
by without meeting with representatives
of innovative companies like this that have
imaginative solutions to offer Canada and
the world. The health of our environment
and the health of our children depend on
the practical solutions being developed
by companies like this one. According to
what they tell me, however, companies need
assistance in the beginning to get their
initiatives going; in order to succeed,
they need help from the Government of Canada.
However, there is no program for these companies,
each of which is developing its capacities
through different initiatives.Creating a
program for every initiative would result
in huge bureaucratic paralysis.
Instead of that, the climate change plan
which we just launched and whose implementation
depends on the vote on this budget provides
for the creation of a Climate Fund. The
Government of Canada is prepared to invest
$1 billion in it, beginning with this budget—an
amount that will increase with following
budgets until 2012, for a total of $4 billion.
This Climate Fund will make it possible
for progressive companies to find funding
if they manage to reduce greenhouse gases
in the municipal, industrial or residential
spheres.
It will be a cash for tonne project. It
will be completely revolutionary. We need
it. Canada needs it. If we do this, we will
not recognize Canada in 2012 because we
will have improved our country in so many
ways. It will be spectacular. This is the
tool Canada needs and it depends on the
vote on this budget. Without this budget,
there will be no Climate Fund. And without
the Climate Fund, we will not see any of
the spectacular changes we need.
In the climate change plan that we announced,
there is a list of the possibilities that
this climate fund could provide for all
the following stakeholders:
farmers who adopt low till or zero till
practices;
forestry companies that engage in state-of-the-art
forest management practices;
property developers that include district
heating and renewable energy elements in
their plans for new subdivisions;
businesses that develop innovative ways
to reduce emissions through recycling and
energy efficiency;
companies and municipalities that invest
in their communities by encouraging alternative
transportation modes;
municipalities that capture landfill gas
and use it to generate electricity—
I could also mention University Presidents
who want to encourage their students to
take the bus by giving them free “eco passes”,
and so forth. There are boundless possibilities
when one thinks of all the Canadians who
could find essential assistance thanks to
this Climate Fund.
This Climate Fund is not the only reason
we need this budget. There are so many other
examples. When we speak about this budget,
let us note that it is the greenest one
since Confederation. This budget will enable
us to make our economy work for the environment.
This budget does more than invest $5.2
billion, including $3 billion in new funding,
in the federal environmental policy. It
will transform our economy and make Canada
a leader in the sustainable economy.
Let me give members the list of the things
we need to have through this budget. We
need $40 million for improving the ecological
integrity of the Great Lakes ecosystem and
we need $85 million for a strategy to combat
invasive alien species, such as the sea
lamprey, the zebra mussel and the Asian
longhorned beetle. The budget devotes $28
million to the first phase of the Government's
Oceans Action Plan, and $269 million in
much-needed funds will go to our national
parks.
With regard to science, the budget sets
aside $60 million for geographic information,
$111 million is devoted to the development
of a new generation of remote radar sensing
satellites, and $200 million is allocated
to the development of a sustainable energy,
science and technology strategy.
In my opinion, the $5 billion in gas tax
revenue that the Government of Canada will
transfer to the municipalities in order
to ensure to the sustainable development
of our communities is essential.
This transfer targets support for environmentally
sustainable infrastructure projects such
as public transit, water, waste water treatment,
community energy systems and the handling
of solid waste.
Furthermore, in cooperation with the NDP—they
are not here but they are in agreement—we
have set aside $800 million to further develop
public transportation.
Added to the $300 million the budget invested
in the green response fund, this New Deal
for Cities and Communities is itself a green
plan.
We have allocated $90 million to Health
Canada in order to help identify harmful
substances under the Canadian Environmental
Protection Act.
In addition to the Climate Fund, we have
devoted $4 billion, on which $2 billion
is new money to reduce our greenhouse gas
emissions. I want to mention especially
an additional $225 million that will help
quadruple the number of households that
take advantage of the very popular EnerGuide
for homes retrofit incentives program.
I want also to mention that in the budget
we have a strong push for clean, renewable
energy that will be encouraged, solar, wind
power, renewable energy such as small hydro,
biomass and landfill gas. We will invest
$1 billion to help them to be more competitive
in the market and we will make great use
of the Climate Fund. It will be a massive
push. The list is so long.
I also want to mention $2 billion to $3
billion for the Partnership Fund. This fund
will help us to work with the provinces,
which have so many tools, under the energy
policy, to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
This fund is aimed at helping the Government
of Canada and the provincial and territorial
governments to co-finance their common priorities
with regard to climate change. It is not
hard to imagine many projects with clear
environmental and economic benefits. The
provinces have applauded the Partnership
Fund. They are waiting for the budget, especially
because of this fund.
I am going to quote what I consider to
be the most important paragraph for Canadians
in the budget speech given by the Minister
of Finance. I am being completely objective,
of course. In my opinion, the following
words were the highlight of this budget:
Our great challenge—and our clear responsibility—is
to bring the same focus, the same determination
and the same dedication to protecting and
enhancing our environment as we did to restoring
the health of the nation’s finances. Canadians
don’t want a fiscal mortgage hanging over
the futures of their children and they don’t
want an environmental mortgage to be the
legacy of this generation to the next.
That is why we need this budget. If the
opposition members do not believe me, maybe
they will believe this:
David Runnalls, president of the Canadian
National Institute for Sustainable Development
has summarized the gist of my remarks today.
Of Budget 2005 he said, “It is not just
a bunch of money for environmental programs.
There are lots of different incentives to
the good things that make the economy greener”.
I want also to mention that more than 30
environmental groups in Canada have written
to the leaders of the parties in the House.
I want to quote the letter, which states:
We are writing to remind you that the vast
majority of climatologists are calling on
all governments to take urgent action on
climate change. Canadians in all regions
support rising to the challenge and are
looking to you, their leaders, to act responsibly
in defence of present and future generations.
Yet, this important environmental and economic
issue is being overshadowed in the present
atmosphere of partisan politics. We call
on all parties to put aside their differences
long enough to ensure the measures that
are necessary for implementation of the
Kyoto Protocol, introduced in the February
budget, are approved by Parliament without
delay.There will be plenty of time in the
coming years to re-evaluate, redesign and
expand the plan as it is rolled out. In
the meantime it is essential we act now.
We assure you we will work with Parliament
to improve the plan and make it the best
and most credible in the world.
There is a long list of organisations that
have signed the letter including Greenpeace
Canada, Toronto Environmental Alliance and
Toxic Watch Society of Alberta. I hope the
leaders will listen and will vote unanimously
for the greenest budget in the history of
our federation.
