Canadians are supposed to receive an annual accounting of our federal government's efforts and progress on fighting climate change. It's overdue and Environment Canada won't say why or when it will be released.
“Environment Canada is currently preparing the 2013 Canada’s
Emissions Trends report,” said spokesman Joshua Kirkey, in an email sent
on Friday. “Therefore, they are best positioned to comment on this
report.”
The last report,
released on Aug 8, 2012, revealed that Canada’s climate performance was
improving slightly with annual greenhouse gas emissions projected to be
19 per cent above a target agreed to by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in international negotiations.
The analysis was based partly on an annual inventory report of greenhouse gas emissions submitted by Canada to the United Nations that uses some data collected by Statistics Canada.
The federal statistical agency also announced earlier this month it was delaying the release of a major report on income, housing and shelter costs after uncovering a mistake in its calculations.
Statistics Canada declined to say whether it had any discussions with
or direct exchanges of information with Environment Canada about the
emissions report.
Last year’s emissions trends report confirmed that western Canada’s
oilsands industry was the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas
emissions in Canada and that its climate change footprint would be
greater than those of all provinces except for Ontario in 2020. With
mounting pressure from the Obama administration for Canada to
demonstrate it is doing its part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in
the context of a proposed major pipeline project under review,
Environment Canada has said it is still working on developing those
regulations in partnership with industry and the Alberta government.
8 comments:
That doesn't come as a surprise. If he is surpressing there is nothing to be gained and only a very rediculous move on his part.
We await the report, Mound. But, if the news is not good, you can bet that Harper will try to bury it.
Conservatives by nature are uptight, emotionally constipated, and do their best to suppress their gas so, yes.
This might have something to do with it.
"June 2013: Late on a Friday afternoon the ERCB quietly posted a series of reports indicating that not a single company had met the tailings standards since the previous June.
In fact, companies weren’t even meeting the weaker targets they had negotiated with the regulator.
A new report by independent scientists showed that Alberta enforces fewer than one per cent of potential environmental infractions by oilsands companies."
http://www.pembina.org/op-ed/2471
I expect all your cynicism is not misplaced. Grrr. Thanks for the Pembina information, Alison.
".....after uncovering a mistake in its calculations."
Is it possible that Harper/PMO pointed out that 'mistake'? Is Harper supressing information? Of course.
Only tangentially relevant, but worth thinking about:
Brian Storseth, CPC MP for Westlock-St.Paul, is circulating a questionnaire that is a trial balloon for for enshrining property rights into the Charter.
Concerning because:
1) It could potentially be utilized to undermine collective aboriginal rights to reserve lands (if individual rights are enshrined in the charter, it creates constitutional grounds for individual ownership which erodes collective rights).
2) since the government owns mineral rights to most land, enshrining that in the charter creates even more issues with petrochemical development, since mineral rights holders would have a constitutional right to the land.
http://globalnews.ca/news/793271/know-your-property-rights-a-survey-from-conservative-brian-storseth/
Anon, government already has the mineral rights including the one under your house and my house (if any) - even in big cities. I think only in Canada, eh! I don't know what more MP for Westlock-St.Paul wants to achieve.
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