Evidence of meeting #12 for Bill C-30 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was emissions.
A recording is available from Parliament.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Gas Association
If it's moderate and sending an early signal now to get going, that's probably a good thing and we need to get on with it. If it's forever, we need to make sure we're investing in domestic reductions. It's a question of proportion.
Conservative
Jeff Watson Conservative Essex, ON
I have a question for all the panellists here. Should short- and medium-term targets be negotiated with industry or assigned to industry?
Mr. Bramley, do you want to start?
Director, Climate Change, Pembina Institute
As someone mentioned earlier, there have been literally years of consultations with industry on greenhouse gas targets. Fair enough. Many studies have been done on the cost of different levels of targets, so the time has come to draw all the information together and set some targets. As Mike Cleland says, get on with it.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Gas Association
There are two steps. There needs to be a discussion with industry to make sure we understand what the numbers are and what's practical and realistic. Negotiation is negotiation. At the end of the day, government is the regulator. Government needs to call it and say let's move on.
Vice-President, Sustainable Development, Suncor Energy Inc.
There should be sufficient dialogue to ensure the targets establish creative tension and don't erode investor confidence. But having that understanding, I agree we should move on and set targets for internal energy efficiency that are going to ensure improvement.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Laurie Hawn
Thank you very much.
I do want to thank the witnesses. Mr. Bramley, Mr. Cleland, Mr. Lambert. It was a good discussion, with some good points on various sides. Thank you very much for coming to share them with us.
For the committee, we need to talk about the forest products folks who said initially they could not come on a certain day because they wanted to send the CEO only. We have them now. I'll get the clerk to chat about that because he has better information.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Laurie Hawn
The clerk will bring us up to speed on the latest developments with the forest products folks, who can now come, I believe.
The Clerk
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I was in contact in initial conversations with the Forest Products Association of Canada. We invited them to appear on Thursday, 22. They informed me at the time that they wanted to have their CEO, Avrim Lazar, here or nothing. This was essentially the way they put it.
There was some discussion at the subcommittee about this, and it was decided that we would continue on with the four witnesses who had already confirmed.
Then yesterday I received a call from them saying they would make themselves available on the 22nd, with someone other than the CEO. But if the committee would invite them on another day, such as the 27th, which is on CO2 capture, the CEO would make himself available for that day.
That is the situation.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Laurie Hawn
The question then is, do we want them on the 22nd, with somebody other than the CEO, or on the 27th in the morning, with the CEO?
Mr. Cullen.
NDP
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
I don't particularly mind whether it's the CEO or someone who can speak. Having them in at either time will work; it doesn't matter.
Conservative
Liberal
John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON
I'd like to hear from the CEO, if we can fit him in on the date that works for him.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Laurie Hawn
That is the 27th in the morning. Right now we have three, so he would be the fourth witness. Do we have any problems with that on the government side?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Laurie Hawn
Okay, we'll invite Mr. Lazar for the 27th in the morning.
Thank you.
This meeting is adjourned.
