Trying to find your way around this place? Like most expositions, we offer a map: 
"Leaping from tree to tree, as they float down the mighty rivers of British Columbia. The Giant Redwood. The Larch. The Fir! The mighty Scots Pine! The lofty flowering Cherry! The plucky little Apsen! The limping Roo tree of Nigeria. The towering Wattle of Aldershot! The Maidenhead Weeping Water Plant! The naughty Leicestershire Flashing Oak! The flatulent Elm of West Ruislip! The Quercus Maximus Bamber Gascoigni! The Epigillus! The Barter Hughius Greenus!" (The Lumberjack sketch, Monty Python)
Not only is the above, a good opportunity to learn about a few flora (and occasional fauna), but they are also lyrics that nicely justapose yesterday's throne speech made by the Government of British Columbia.
This is the talk of all talks that more or less sets an agenda for what our provincial government hopes to work on. Specifically, it looks like BC is wanting to lead the way in Canada, and even internationally, in addressing the issue of anthropomorphic CO2 emissions.
"The science is clear. It leaves no room for procrastination. Global warming is real. We will act to stem its growth and minimize the impacts already released. The more timid our response is, the harsher the consequences will be"
Words like these, uttered by Lt-Gov. Iona Campagnolo, pretty much signal a clear greening of the government's intentions. Of course, as David Suzuki commented yesterday, "the devil is in the details", but even most pessimists seem to agree that things do look promising.
To begin with, there is an initial longterm target to cut emissions by 33 percent by 2020, something that will presumably work closely with a similar (though less ambitious) target set by the State of California. In fact, officials from California have been working with BC on this, and will presumably continue to do so. Imagine that, tagteam action from Premier Gordon Campbell and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger! As well, task forces are now being set up to work on short term goals that are aimed to be delivered by 2012 and 2016, and I guess this is where close scrutiny of the "details" will take place.
To lend credence to the intentions of the government, the speech also announced that any coal-fired power plants built in the future will not be permitted to emit any greenhouse gas into the atmosphere. This, in particular, directly addresses current plans for the building of two new BC coal-fired power plants which now must meet this strict criteria.
Anyway, potentially exciting times in my neck of the woods, and times that hopefully will engage all levels of citizenship, be it at the private or public sectors, but perhaps most pressingly at the individual level.
Now, can anyone tell me what the "limping Roo tree of Nigeria" is?
(Full transcript of the throne speech can be found here)
Comments
It is start and I am glad to see that BC is willing to take a lead. In many ways (both good and bad) BC is Canada's California and I think that our citizens are willing to take a stand on the issue of climate change. And from a political point of view it cuts the legs out from under the Green party and to a lesser extent the NDP but perhaps I am too cynical.
And as for the limping Roo tree I beleive it was an early incarnation of the infamous Nigerian letter scam. The message was carved into the trunk and the tree was sent limping off to the next town in the hope that people would send money to frre up more trees.
Posted by: CanuckRob | February 14, 2007 6:09 PM