[Pauline]

This announcement came out of the PMO (Prime Minister's Office) today:

Canada's new Clean Air Act will reduce pollution and help improve health of Canadians

October 10, 2006
Vancouver

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that the government will introduce Canada’s Clean Air Act, which will set in motion the country’s first comprehensive and integrated approach to tackle air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

“Our new national government has a new approach. We have a plan that is going to replace rhetoric with results, a plan that is going to move from short-term headlines to long-term progress, a plan that is going to get things done on the environment,” said Prime Minister Harper.

If passed, Canada’s Clean Air Act will allow the government to:


Move industry from voluntary compliance to strict enforcement;


Replace the current ad hoc, patchwork system with clear, consistent, and comprehensive national standards; and


Institute a holistic approach that doesn’t treat the related issues of pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions in isolation.

The Prime Minister said his government will consult extensively with industry, the provinces and territories to ensure these new regulations get measurable results on realistic timelines.

Canada’s Clean Air Act will be introduced in the House of Commons next week.

It will be interesting to see the details. Will it be truly useful regulations or just bandaids to pacify the environmentalists?

[Raptor235]

interesting... yeah more details would be helpfull

[fleabitn]

Update:

CBC:
The Harper government introduced on Thursday a proposed clean air act that would begin regulating smog levels by 2010 and looks to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. 
The bill sets out a number of regulation timetables for industries that emit air pollution and greenhouse gases, including the auto industry and the oil and gas sector.
The bill also calls for the reduction of car emissions by 2011 to align Canada with regulations of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Under the proposed bill, there would be no hard caps on greenhouse gas emissions until 2020 or 2025, but the government will seek to cut emissions by 45 to 65 per cent by 2050.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2006/...clean-act.html

++++
Globe:
OTTAWA  — Environmentalists panned the Clean Air Act as soon as it was introduced yesterday, saying the pillar of the government's made-in-Canada green plan will allow greenhouse-gas emissions to keep growing for years.
All three opposition parties said they would vote against the bill, casting doubt on whether it will ever become law.
The bill replaces Canada's commitment under the international Kyoto Protocol to start reducing greenhouse gases by 2008 with a new target to cut such emissions in half by 2050.
“From now on, all industry sectors will have mandatory requirements and we will enforce those requirements. Our plan puts the health of Canadians first and the health of the environment first,” said Environment Minister Rona Ambrose, who pledged to fine all businesses that fail to meet the pollution targets.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May expressed concern that new auto standards will be based on U.S. national standards as opposed to more stringent rules adopted by some U.S. states such as California.
“For anything related to greenhouse gases, the [Clean Air] Act is a disaster. All of the Kyoto countries that have targets are committed to meeting them, except Canada.”
“This sounds to me like a dirty air act,” said Beatrice Olivastri of Friends of the Earth Canada.
Environmentalist Pierre Sadik of the David Suzuki Foundation said the plan was “disappointing” given the six-month buildup in advance of the announcement.
“To the casual observer it might seem like there's something there, but really it's just tinkering around the edges,” he said.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl.../National/home

Ottawa Citizen:
++++
OTTAWA (CP) - The Clean Air Act that the Conservatives hoped would revive their flagging electoral fortunes appears to be dead on arrival.
Opposition parties and environmental groups slammed the proposed legislation Thursday, dismissing it as a "dirty air act" and a "hot air plan." All three opposition parties in the House of Commons said they will vote against the bill, meaning it has no chance of passing into law in the current minority Parliament.
The Conservatives - eager to dispel the notion that the party is soft on the environment and regain support in Quebec and among moderate voters - built expectations around the bill by making it the centrepiece of their green agenda.
But it contains no short-term targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions - although the government says it will set industry-specific targets next year.

http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/...4b6897&k=86113

[horselover]

All talk and no action.

[Pauline]

Not even much talk, at that.

[horselover]

True too and that sucks.