Canada Losing Its Green Edge?

As leaders prepare for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, Canadian environmentalists say their country is no longer considered an important player on the world stage. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports:

Transcript

As leaders prepare for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, Canadian environmentalists say their country is no longer considered
an important player on the world stage. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Karen Kelly reports:


John Bennett remembers when Canada was one of the so-called “good guys.” He’s the director for climate change and energy with the Sierra Club of Canada.
And he says 14 years ago, Canadian leaders were among the first to call for action on global warming. Now, the Canadian government is seeking exemptions
from the Kyoto climate change agreement.


“The leadership it’s showing is how do you wheedle out of an important environmental agreement? How do you weaken the agreement to the point that it’s
meaningless in order to make it cheaper and easier for Canada to achieve the targets.”


Environmentalists at home and abroad say Canada has been slow to take serious action.
Canadian leaders have delayed signing the Kyoto Protocol. They argue that Canada should be able to make fewer reductions in pollution because it exports so-called
clean energy – like hydroelectric power – to the United States.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Kelly.