OTTAWA – Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s biofuel bill is not designed to address the climate crisis and it should be rejected by Parliament, says the Green Party. The government has introduced Bill C-33, which would make mandatory a minimum five percent biofuel content in all fuels by 2010.
 
The government is claiming that Bill C-33 will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by four megatonnes per year, something the Green Party says could be more easily accomplished by improving vehicle fuel efficiency standards.
 
“On a life-cycle basis, corn ethanol results in only a marginal reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels,” said Environment critic and Guelph by-election candidate Mike Nagy. “Mr. Harper’s stated goal could be met and even surpassed by adopting California’s vehicle emissions standards and thereby reducing tailpipe emissions by 30 percent over the next decade. Instead, Mr. Harper has chosen to harmonize Canada with the Bush Administration’s weak standards.”
 
Mr. Nagy said that if the Harper government was serious about reducing vehicular greenhouse gas emissions and stopping climate change, it would also implement a carbon tax and focus on fuel efficiency, public transportation, reducing vehicle dependency and expanding the low carbon economy.