Following my feature article on the position of Harper Government regarding climatic changes discussed at the Bali Conference, held last December, a reader, Mr.Éric Barnabé, was wondering « if Harper was right ».
Mr Barnabé contends that China, India and United States have not signed any agreement on greenhouse-effect gas (GHC). Even if it is true that Bush administration refused to sign, China (2004) and India (2003) have ratified the Kyoto Protocol.
The reader is also putting forward that China and India have "no antipollutive standards". We should be careful about conveyed arguments from George Bush and Stephen Harper who justify their inaction in connection with environment.
China does a lot with regards to the protection of the environment. For example, let us take the last news item of the Transportation Minister, Mr. Lawrence Canon, concerning the settlement of a project on vehicle fuel consumption. Mr. Canon would like to be in line with « the stringent and dominating North American standard ». That said, this standard belongs to Bush who anticipates that new vehicles sold in the United States should be able to cover 6.7 litres per 100 km, instead of 8.7 litres per 100 km prescribed by the actual regulation.
If Harper Government were serious in his desire to adopt a stringent and dominating regulation in North America, he would adopt the same as in California which anticipates an approximate consumption of 5.3 litres per 100 km, for 2020. Government could also be in line with Chinese standards towards vehicle fuel consumption which, in 2008 are already equal to the ones that United States will have …in 2020 !
China already produces 7.5 % of its energy thanks to renewable energies (solar, wind power, hydroelectricity) and would like to attain 10% by 2010. If the goal is reached, China will reduce GHC emissions equivalent to 2 times the Kyoto Canadian objectives.
This issue brought by Mr. Barnabé is important and allows us to understand how much Harper Government is on the wrong trail. In Canada, we produce 5 times more GHS per inhabitant than Chinese. So, I think that we are in a bad position to lecture them.
