OTTAWA - Jean Chrétien told the House of Commons yesterday the government hopes to ratify the Kyoto Protocol on climate change "one day."
The Prime Minister's remarks were taken by some as a further signal that government support for ratifying the treaty is waning, particularly after the European Union rejected Canada's demand for credits for exporting clean energy to the United States.
"There are discussions underway with the provinces and an analysis is being carried out, a cost-benefit analysis, and when we have all of the data we will make the decision," Mr. Chrétien said in the House. "I think it is important for Canada to position itself to sign Kyoto one day."
In a recent letter to an industry association, the Prime Minister said he wanted to be in a position to ratify the agreement this year.
"There is a file [Kyoto] that hasn't yet been completed at this time. In our government we look at all of the aspects before making a decision and the interests of some might be different from the interests of others and someday the government will have to make a decision and when that day comes the government will be unanimous," Mr. Chrétien said.
But senior ministers are expected to urge Mr. Chrétien during a Cabinet meeting today to forego signing the Kyoto treaty and begin work on an alternative, made-in-Canada climate change policy. The ministers are expected to argue the Kyoto Protocol is unworkable and a danger to the Canadian economy.
A key issue for Canada is getting credit for exports of clean energy -- natural gas and hydro-electricity. But members of the European Union on the weekend rejected Canada's overtures, saying recognition of such exports to the United States would constitute a re-opening of the treaty.
The idea behind clean energy exports is that Canadian hydroelectricity and natural gas can replace coal-burning power plants in the United States, leading to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Canadian energy producers argue they should get credit for the emissions reductions in the United States, to offset the upstream emissions produced by extracting natural gas or building hydroelectric dams in Canada to supply the U.S. market.
Getting credit for its clean energy exports to the United States -- which has rejected the Kyoto Protocol -- could reduce by as much as 30% Canada's emission reduction obligations under the Kyoto agreement.
Mr. Chrétien said the recognition of these exports is important for provinces such as Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia and they will be the ones implementing the Kyoto Protocol.
David Anderson, the Minister of the Environment, said yesterday Cabinet has not yet received an estimate of the costs and benefits of Kyoto. The discussion on whether to ratify the deal will become more realistic once those are available, he said.
"The objective of the Prime Minister is very clear -- it's ratification. That said, we have a number of hurdles to go across first and we want to have full consultation with provinces and territories and with the many industries that could be affected and with the general public," Mr. Anderson said.
Mr. Anderson said clean energy exports are important to the final decision on ratification.
"Canadian ratification would be a lot easier if we had clean energy credit recognition by the Europeans and the other nations that are involved in the process of Kyoto," Mr. Anderson said. He said Canada is going to pursue the issue at an upcoming meeting of a Kyoto working group.
Lorne Taylor, Alberta's Environment Minister, said Ottawa should not even consider ratifying Kyoto if Canada does not get credit for selling clean energy to the United States.
"That's the deal-breaker," Mr. Taylor told The Edmonton Journal. "If we're shipping clean natural gas down so they can replace coal, it reduces the world's CO2s [carbon dioxide emissions], why shouldn't we get credit for it?"
The Alberta government is now putting forth a North American emission-reduction plan.
"Let's get on with a North American solution to this where we do business. Canada does not fit within the framework of the Kyoto protocol," Murray Smith, Alberta's Energy Minister, said yesterday.
In Parliament, the political opposition pounced on Mr. Chrétien's comments, complaining that Canada is backing out of the treaty, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 6% below levels produced by the Canadian economy in 1990. Such emissions are believed by many scientists to be the source of global warming.
"I think we've just seen a spectacular backsliding ... of the government's commitment to do what is needed to move forward on green house gas emission reductions," said Alexa McDonough, leader of the New Democratic Party.
"To hear the Prime Minister go from the day when they talked proudly about providing leadership on Kyoto to backsliding -- we'll do it by June, 2002, then maybe the end of the year, and now saying one day maybe we will ratify Kyoto -- is a total abandonment of leadership."
Environmental groups condemned the government's Kyoto stance, saying the bid for clean energy exports is an excuse for delaying ratification of Kyoto.
"Prime Minister Jean Chrétien should order his Ministers to stop pushing for clean-fuel credits and instead honour Canada's commitment to ratify the Kyoto Protocol," said Gerry Scott, director of the Suzuki Foundation's climate change campaign.
"This is nothing more than a delay tactic and bad-faith bargaining. In 2001, we accepted a final compromise agreement that we must now ratify and maintain our international reputation by so doing."
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