As Canada welcomes 3,500 world energy leaders to the 21st World Energy Congress in Montreal this weekend, Prime Minister Stephen Harper will be boasting about making Canada a global clean energy superpower – just as other countries are threatening to boycott the Alberta oilsands.
“It is utterly preposterous to think that Stephen Harper – the same man awarded the ‘Fossil of the Year’ award at the Copenhagen Climate Conference last year – would contemplate standing before the international community and boasting about his leadership on clean energy,” said Liberal MP Francis Valeriote, who held a press conference in Ottawa today.
“Instead of preparing our country to compete in the new green global economy, the Conservative government has spent more than four years dragging its feet and weakening environmental oversight. And it’s the energy sector itself that is paying the price as our precious resources – and Alberta communities – are under attack by other countries.”
Mr. Harper’s speech on Sunday comes just as nationally-televised commercials are running in two of Canada’s most important allies and trading partners – the U.S. and Britain – calling on its citizens to boycott Alberta. One major U.S. company, Walgreens, has pledged to switch to suppliers who do not use fuel containing oilsands crude.
“This is how the outside world is now able to portray Canada, specifically Alberta,” said Liberal Environment Critic Gerard Kennedy. “The Conservative approach to the oilsands is giving Canada a black eye, and Stephen Harper is doing nothing about it, even though it is in his own backyard.
“The Alberta oilsands are one of Canada’s key economic drivers, so we must make them more environmentally sustainable or Canada risks closing markets. In fact, it’s more than a risk – it’s happening right now. And with lost markets go Canadian jobs. Mr. Harper not only risks our future economy, but is putting Canadian jobs at risk.”
The Liberal Party has pledged to restore Canada’s climate change leadership with a firm commitment to curb global warming and create the jobs of tomorrow by turning Canada into a world leader in the new sustainable economy. It’s part of a wider environmental strategy that will clean up Canada’s waterways and protect forests and other ecosystems.
“We need clear rules for industry and strong environmental standards, so we can tell the whole world that Canada’s energy exports are sustainable,” said Liberal Natural Resources Critic Denis Coderre. “This is an opportunity for Canadian leadership. A Liberal Government will bring Canadians together and create a strategy so we can create jobs in our energy sector while protecting our environment.
“Contrast that with Stephen Harper who has done nothing but cut the very programs that were helping Canadians make clean green choices and save money on their home energy bills and that assisted the renewable energy industry. And while the United States committed $55 billion to green stimulus spending, in comparison Canada only allocated less than five per cent of its budget to green stimulus,” said Mr. Coderre.
“After more than four years and four environment Ministers, the Conservatives having nothing to show for it,” concluded Mr. Valeriote. “Canada needs a federal government that is clearly committed to a cleaner, greener future. Either we act now, or we spend the next decade wishing we had.”
