Climate change : actions , not targets

DÉCEMBRE 2007-JANVIER 2008 58 As the Harper government searches for an effective climate policy it should focus on actions, not targets. Avoiding commitments to greenhouse gas (GHG) emission targets should apply not only to the government’s domestic agenda, but to the position Canada takes at international gatherings such as the one to be held in Bali to consider post-Kyoto targets. Chris Green of McGill University explains why commitments to emission reduction targets are not credible and stand in the way of the energy technology revolution/race needed to stabilize the climate. He also explains why global carbon dioxide emissions have tripled since 2000, relative to the 1990s, and sets out actions that Canada could take to slow, then begin to reduce, its emissions.