Environment Committee on Jan. 30th, 2008

Evidence of meeting #10 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was targets.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

Bill C-377, An Act to ensure Canada assumes its responsibilities in preventing dangerous climate change

Committee Business

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Ian Rutherford Executive Director, Canadian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society

John Stone Adjunct Professor, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Carleton University, As an Individual

Andrew Weaver Professor and Canada Research Chair, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria, As an Individual

David Sauchyn Research Professor, Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative, University of Regina, As an Individual

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

Let's not open that can of worms right now. Let's just deal with this amendment.

Mr. Scarpaleggia.

5:25 p.m.

Liberal

Francis Scarpaleggia Liberal Lac-Saint-Louis, QC

I would like to vote on this, and then I'll make my point.

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

The amendment, as everyone knows, is that the committee organize a trip to northern Alberta to visit the oil sands before the current session ends. That means June, so maybe not in the backyard of Mr. Jean, but when spring is here. That's the motion.

(Amendment negatived)

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

Now we're back to the original motion.

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

We're going to amend it, then.

The suggested amendment from Mr. McGuinty, I believe it was, was that we add some other people instead of taking a trip, provide a balanced group of witnesses, which has been our tradition, hopefully. Monsieur Jean suggested industry representatives—I think that's a good idea—from both oil and gas, and also health. I have a friendly amendment. Would they accept it as a friendly amendment?

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

To add to the existing amendment the addition of additional witnesses as--

5:25 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

May I suggest a form of wording: to add to the existing witnesses such additional witnesses as may be agreed to by the steering committee. If they don't agree, then they come back to the main--

January 30th, 2008 / 5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

They come back here anyway. It comes back here for approval anyway.

Are you accepting that?

5:25 p.m.

Liberal

Francis Scarpaleggia Liberal Lac-Saint-Louis, QC

I just want to make it clear. It's not as slanted as one would think. We're calling representatives of NRCan--Dr. Randy Mikula is certainly not a detractor of the oil sands--and representatives of the Alberta government.

I would like to take some of the partisan flavour out of this. Yes, we can invite, obviously, someone from the oil sands industry. But let's not get carried away and overwhelm this with a multitude of people and then we lose sight of the issue, which is what are the--

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Bob Mills

Wonderful words, “non-partisan”, about an issue like this.... I like those words too. I think if we take this subamendment, if it's accepted by you, then that adds.... We can work on that list, as we did with Bill C-377, rather than discuss this ad nauseam.

5:25 p.m.

Liberal