Canada defended its leadership of U.N. talks on fighting global warming on Monday despite admitting that Ottawa will not meet its own goals under the Kyoto Protocol.
Environment Minister Rona Ambrose, who is chairing the May 15-26 meetings in Bonn, has suggested that Kyoto should be softened for Canada in a second period from 2012 saying Ottawa had no chance of reaching its goals.
"The challenge we face in achieving the targets domestically has no relevance to our commitment to ... ensure that we are contributing to the international effort to address climate change," Ambrose said of Canada's 2006 U.N. climate presidency.
Ambrose "must live up (to Canada's Kyoto goals) or stand down," said Jennifer Morgan, climate policy director of the WWF environmental group. "Vague statements about 'commitments to international efforts' are not serious."
German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said it was too early for Canada to give up on Kyoto targets for 2012.
"I'm not sure it's true (that Canada will overshoot its goals)," he said. "We are in 2006, there's 6 years left".
More international criticism here, some domestic questions here.
Rona Ambrose as chair of the Kyoto discussions is akin to Charlton Heston heading up PETA. There is only one outcome to this sham, if Ambrose insists on carrying on in her role- Canada's international reputation will be tarnished. Better to fade to the sidelines and do nothing, than stand front and center and allow other nations easy potshots. This position is high-profile, Ambrose is a figurehead and will be constantly questioned. Give her the hook and spare Canada the embarrassment.
Update
The government was grilled today over Ambrose's appearance in Bonn. Line of the day goes to Gilles Duceppe:
Bloc Leader Duceppe called Ambrose's position "completely stupid.''
"She looks like she's participating in a kind of festival of Just For Laughs,'' he told reporters, referring to the annual Montreal comedy festival.
6 comments:
I'm soooo embarrassed for us! I mean, how can we possibly have someone like Ambrose representing Canadians at this world conference. Blech!
I'm soooo embarassed for us. How could we have sanctimoniously signed an agreement 10 years ago and lectured other countries about their greenhouse gas emmisions while ours INCREASED by 35%.
We became hypocrites on the world stage. We have NO moral high ground to promote this program until we clean up our own country.
This is absolutely shameful. At least now we are being honest about it - signing a piece of paper and doing a fine job of public relations and boasting and spin does not reduce greenhouse gases.
Also, for all the people who were fooled into thinking greenhouse gases ala Kyotot is the same as the air pollution that makes us sick maybe NOW some honesty will de-program the Liberal bots who bought that bunch of bogus and we can start also cleaning up our air, water and land instead of talking about it.
"INCREASED by 35%"
And most of that was from the province you argued(in the other thread, under a different name ;))as an example of "cutting edge" clean technologies. Cough.
Nothing says hypocrite like chairing something you are on record trashing. Don't use the Liberal crutch to absolve the horrible optics.
I don't think Kyoto is the answer, though. It was so watered down from its original intention. Take a look at what this blogger is saying. Not something a lot of progressives are talking about any more, is it?
b
I don't think Kyoto is the answer either- it's woefully inadequate. However, this Asia-Pacific smokescreen that we are moving towards is a complete mirage that makes Kyoto look like David Suzuki crafted the Protocol.
b
I don't think Kyoto is the answer either- it's woefully inadequate. However, this Asia-Pacific smokescreen that we are moving towards is a complete mirage that makes Kyoto look like radical reform.
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