In an article in yesterday’s Globe and Mail, columnist Jeffrey Simpson wrote about how Canada has the worst record of any country that signed Kyoto Protocol.
It’s easy to understand why Canada is being singled out for criticism. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has abandoned Canada’s commitments under the Kyoto Protocol and has shown an aversion to real caps on emissions. He is also refusing to take on new commitments unless developing countries like China and India take on binding targets.
It’s an extremely unjust position. You can’t ask poorer nations to shoulder the burden and do just as much as wealthy nations, especially when we caused the problem. Wealthy countries can afford to develop the technologies that will help us cut our emissions. Without cooperation, technology and incentives, developing countries will be left to make the same mistakes that were made in rich countries.Besides, countries like China and India are included in the Kyoto Protocol. Developing countries were exempt from reductions in the first phase of the Protocol but they will begin to take on commitments in the second phase, which begins after 2012. As the chart below shows, China’s emissions per person are only about one quarter that of Canada, while India’s are less than one tenth. Over 150 million Chinese and 350 million Indians survive on less than one dollar per day. Both countries lack adequate housing, schools and hospitals for most of their people, and meeting the needs of their people will require their emissions to rise further, and much further if they try to follow in the fossil-fueled footsteps of countries like Canada. The best way to convince these countries to take another path, is for us in the rich countries to lead the way.
Hundreds of millions of Chinese and Indians want a comparable lifestyle and have the same consumer choices as citizens of the rich industrialized countries. By pointing the finger at their emissions before changing our own ways we are essentially saying they should continue to live in poverty so that we can enjoy our air conditioning, SUVs and big-screen TVs.
Little wonder many people in these countries think the climate change issue is a way for industrialized countries to protect their secure position by pulling the ladder up after them, and denying the developing world the chance to share the world’s limited resources. Clearly something more than finger-pointing is required to convince these countries to shift to a low-emission development path.
The way forward
Canada can start by meeting its international obligations. In 1992, Canada signed the UN Climate Convention which required rich industrialized countries like Canada to:
- Take the lead by reducing its own emissions – the amount was later agreed in the Kyoto Protocol
- Ensure financial support and transfer of technologies to developing countries to help them control their own emissions
- Support developing countries in adapting to the impacts of climate change
So what would Canada have to do if it took its international responsibilities seriously?
The key is …