Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to make a response to the environment minister's statement this afternoon. The minister has a great deal to clean up following the tenure of the Deputy Prime Minister, so what better day for the minister to start than Earth Day.
When former American President Gerald Ford proclaimed this day Earth Day he stated: "The earth will continue to regenerate its life sources only as long as we and all the peoples of the world do our part to conserve its natural resources. It is a responsibility which every human being shares. Through voluntary action each of us can join in building a productive land in harmony with nature".
There is no question that a day such as Earth Day is beneficial to heighten the awareness of the problems with our environment. However, this one day should not be the only day when we bend down to pick up the litter scattered over our streets, sidewalks and yards. The three Rs are for everyday in our communities.
At the federal level Canadians should be able to look at the actions of the minister and be confident that his actions will be beneficial to help keep our air, land and water very clean. We should not have to worry but we do worry when we look at the record left by the former Minister of the Environment and the plans set out by the current minister.
When I became the Reform caucus environmental critic I found myself dealing with a number of issues such as lifting the Irving Whale , the toxic waste mess of Sydney Tar Ponds and the gasoline additive MMT. To date the Irving Whale remains at the bottom on the Atlantic ocean off the coast of Prince Edward Island, leaking bunker C oil and PCBs.
The Sydney Tar Ponds site is far from being cleaned up since more hot spots of PCBs have been found. The Irving Whale has cost taxpayers $18.7 million, and still nothing to show for it. The Sydney Tar Ponds site clean-up has cost taxpayers more than $55 million with only 90 tonnes of the 700,000 tonnes incinerated.
With respect to the ban on the gasoline additive MMT, the minister still has no proof that MMT is harmful to the onboard diagnostic systems of automobiles. The issue is not environmental, it is political.
The west coast fishery is at risk. The minister has a role. We are monitoring. May he have courage to act.
In the minister's speech he made reference to the uncontrollable smog in urban areas and how it is a risk for children. If the minister is so concerned with smog, why would he want to ban the use of MMT in gasoline when even his own officials admit that MMT reduces NOx emissions, one of the greatest contributors to urban smog?
It seems the government's environment ministers make decisions based on what they think will affect their political future rather than on the future of the environment.
The minister mentioned various private citizens co-operating in various ways to clean up the environment. Throughout this Earth Day week in my area of Burnaby volunteers are doing what they can to make a difference.
On the British Columbia Institute of Technology campus a litter pick-up campaign is under way, which will include the Guichon Creek. Others are raising money for the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society by getting pledges and walking or running the five-kilometre Burnaby mountain loop, starting at the Simon Fraser University campus.
Fish habitat in New Westminster in the Brunette Creek will be restored. People across the country will be doing what they can to make a difference in their local communities. Unfortunately this will not be enough. There are many large scale projects too large for volunteers to do on their own.
Last Thursday the committee on the status of endangered wildlife in Canada added 16 new species to Canada's list of species at risk. The issue of endangered species is one for which Canadians will want to find a solution.
Last year the former Minister of the Environment came forward with a proposal. She announced it as the solution, one which all of Canada would readily adopt. The proposal was weak from every angle. Not only did it not address the most serious issue of habitat preservation, but the proposed act would have covered only a mere 4 per cent of the land of Canada. If the Deputy Prime Minister believes animals respect provincial and federal borders, she has been drinking too much water out of the Hamilton harbour.
If the new Minister of the Environment, who so eloquently spoke about how Canadians want national action to conserve nature, truly believes what he speaks, he will have no trouble assuring the House that a new endangered species act will stop any further species from being added to a list of species at risk as a consequence of human activity.
Canadians understand the current Minister of the Environment has a great deal of work ahead of him. They also understand the previous minister created more problems than she solved.
Today, being Earth Day, is a great day for the minister to put Canada's environment back on the right track. Therefore I urge the minister to listen to what the grassroots are telling him and to allow independent, scientific tests whenever necessary and to use the best that science has to offer rather than political preening in the decision making process.
We all want to do what is right for the environment. During the minister's tenure, may we anticipate results rather than speeches, and sound policy rather than more reports on the shelf. The country is waiting.