Speech by Senator Nick Sibbeston

Energy Action Awards, March 6, 2008

·       I am pleased to be here tonight to participate in the Energy Action Awards recognizing achievements of Northerners in the areas of Energy Efficiency, Renewable Technology and Energy Awareness.

·       I applaud the Arctic Energy Alliance for establishing these awards some years ago.  Encouraging these approaches, recognizing those who have been innovative to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and generally championing the climate change clause is laudable.

·       These surely are the Academy Awards of all things northern.

·       My purpose here tonight is to introduce our main keynote speaker, Jamie Bastedo, and to present to you “On the Frontiers of Climate Change,” a study that Jamie undertook for me this summer and fall. 

·       We contribute to this phenomenon when we operate our power plants, vehicles, skidoos and boats but most emissions come from the south, the industrial heartland in Ontario, the oil sands in Alberta or farther afield, the United States and, increasingly, China where they use vast amounts of coal to produce electricity and drive industry.

·       Satellite photos show that sea ice is diminishing.  Other scientific measures show that temperatures are rising.  Biologists demonstrate the subtle effects on wildlife.

·       Whether it is whitetail deer appearing north of Yellowknife, a robin in Sachs Harbour or the bumblebee that made national news when it was spotted in Pangnirtung, there are clear signs that things are changing.

·       Despite the cold this winter, most northerners recognize that things have changed in the last twenty years.  Winters are milder, making it harder to build and maintain winter roads, weather is more unpredictable, the land and the water are being affected. 

·       My own house, our B & B in Ft. Simpson has been sinking due to melting permafrost.

·       The science shows it and the experience of ordinary people confirm it.  Everywhere I go in the North it is the number one issue people bring up.  Weather which has often been idle talk when we meet is now serious talk.

·       Last June I travelled up to the Beaufort Sea and climate change was on everyone’s mind.  In Ulukhaktok, there was open sea much earlier than ever seen before.   Some of you may have seen my Christmas card with the picture of Santa on the shores of Tuk, shaking his fist.

·       Who better than Santa who lives in the far North to make the point that it’s getting too hot up there – causing all sorts of problems.  From the beach in Tuk, we coaxed him into town and  went to the schools in Tuk and Aklavik to talk to the young people about it.  Because they are the ones who will be most affected.

·       I use Santa in a humourous way just to get people to think.  But climate change is a serious issue.

·       That’s why I had Jamie put together the excellent study you have before you.  It tells the story of what is really happening in the North – bringing scientific knowledge and community experience together.

·       You will notice that we deliberately put the book together in the shape of a calendar so that, as you read through it, you will be reminded that time is passing and that time is running out.

·       We need to share a sense of urgency with people in the North and people in Ottawa. 

·       I also want to get the message across that it is up to all of us to do our bit.  This is a global problem but we need to do our part.  Little steps as they say.

·       By not idling our cars, by using more efficient appliances, by increasing the use of clean energy such as wind, solar or hydro. 

·       Here in Yellowknife – which recently won an award for sustainability –  they are exploring the use of geothermal energy from the old Con mine shafts to replace heating with oil.  I worked at both Giant and Copn mines in my youth and know it’s hot down there.  To get that up to heat our homes, arenas and offices will be a great use of energy presently doing nothing.

·       We need a ‘can do’ attitude not a Candu reactor.  We need to show leadership.  Leadership isn’t about waiting for the crowd.  It’s about being ahead of the crowd.  In Northern terms, it’s about breaking trail rather than following a well worn path.

·       The businesses and individuals being honored here tonight are showing that kind of leadership.  It’s time for the rest of us, and especially the Federal Government to show leadership too!

·       We need to act now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as fast and as far as we can.  But we also need to prepare for the change that is already on its way.  Change has occurred and will continue to occur.  We need to plan for and prepare for that change.

·       This is not an either/or choice.  We need both.  The need to adapt cannot be used as an excuse not to act now to slow and stop greenhouse gas emissions.  There can be no more excuses.

·       We cannot turn a blind eye to change either.  It has happened and will continue to happen even if we all parked our trucks tomorrow. 

·       Both approaches will cost money – but failing to do both will cost a lot more. 

·       Acting on climate change may well slow our rate of growth a notch. 

·       Failing to act will likely put the world in the most serious depression since the 1930s.  The noted British economist, Sir Nicholas Stern, puts the cost of not acting on climate change in the trillions of dollars world-wide.

·       And it is quite possible – by acting sooner rather than later – that climate change will create new opportunities in technology that actually help the economy grow. 

·       There will of course be winners and losers – big change always creates winners and losers.  It will be important that government help businesses and workers adjust to new opportunities as old ones disappear.

·       We must use every tool we have.  Encouraging energy efficiency and promoting renewable energy sources are two of them. 

·       Purchasing carbon offsets for air travel – which I have proposed in the Senate – is another.  I understand the Arctic Energy Alliance is working hard to bring this option to Northerners.

·       New technologies – such as carbon capture and storage – must also be explored, which the Federal Government has recognized in the last budget.

·       And we have to use the best tools available to us.  One of the most effective and efficient is the market place. 

·       Governments can sat the targets and establish the rules but it is the market, more than anything that will get us where we need to go quicker and more efficiently and with less pain.

·       We need to move now in a coordinated fashion – at the national and international level – to set a price for carbon.  Once this is done, businesses and individuals will respond, will change their behavior and move toward a low carbon economy. 

·       So we also need to think seriously about a carbon tax.

·       A carbon tax can and should be revenue neutral.  Revenues from any new tax should be used to reduce income taxes or used to pay for incentives for energy efficiency, investments in new technology and the costs of climate change adaptation.

·       British Columbia has taken the lead in this.  Their carbon tax – which is designed along these lines - will be introduced this year and increased slowly over a number of years to give individuals and businesses time to adjust and change their approaches to energy use.  Now other provinces and territories or, better yet, the Federal Government have to follow that lead.

·       Everything has to be on the table.  There are no more excuses and no taboo topics.  Time is running out.

·       You may have heard of  Barrack Obama, who is creating quite a stir in the Democratic Presidential race so I will end by paraphrasing him. 

·       People will say that I offer false hope when I tell you we can fight climate change.  They say we cannot do it. 

·       But I say – Hope is never false and I say -- Yes, we can.

·       I’d now like to turn the podium over to Jamie Bastedo.  Jamie Bastedo is a well known naturalist, educator, broadcaster, and author whose work is all about taking science to the streets.

·       As a performer, radio host and writer of both fiction and non-fiction, Jamie communicates an incredible  enthusiasm for the land. He has written 10 books on northern nature, plus hundreds of natural history articles in magazines such as Up Here, Backpacker, Winter Living, and Canadian Geographic.   

·       Ladies and Gentlemen, Jamie Bastedo.