I have to post this in full. This news just blows me away.  

http://www.econ-environment.ca/ 

OTTAWA, Oct. 6 - More than 230 economists teaching in Canadian universities have signed an open letter to federal political leaders calling for economically coherent action on climate change. Among the signatories are some of Canada’s top economists, including current and past presidents of the Canadian Economics Association, and holders of Canada Research Chairs and the Order of Canada.

“Economists disagree on many things, but on what needs to be done about climate change there is considerable agreement,” explains Ross Finnie, one of the three authors of the letter and an Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. “The signatories come from a wide range of political persuasions and will vote for different parties, but we all agree that effective policies for addressing climate change must be based on sound economic principles. Our goal is to help inform public debate on climate change at a time when people are really paying attention to this issue – during the federal election. Our hope is that whichever party forms the next government will act on these principles.”

“It’s remarkable how much agreement there is among economists on this key point – the best climate change policy is to put a price on carbon,” says Nancy Olewiler, another of the authors and director of SFU’s Public Policy Program. David Green, the third author and professor at UBC, adds “We also want people to be clear that all policies that alter carbon emissions will affect the prices they face – some more than others.”

The signatories agree on these 10 principles:

1. Canada needs to act on climate change now.
2. Any substantive action will involve economic costs.
3. These economic impacts cannot be an excuse for inaction.
4. Pricing carbon is the best approach from an economic perspective.
   1. Pricing allows each business and family to choose the response that is best and most efficient for them.
   2. Pricing induces innovation.
   3. Carbon is almost certainly under-priced right now.
5. Regulation is the most expensive way to meet a given climate change goal.
6. A carbon tax has the advantage of providing certainty in the price of carbon.
7. A cap and trade system provides certainty on the quantity of carbon emitted, but not on the price of carbon and can be a highly complex policy to implement.
8. Although carbon taxes have the most obvious effects on consumers, all carbon reduction policies increase the prices individuals face.
9. Price mechanisms can be regressive and our policy should address this.
10. A pricing mechanism can allow other taxes to be reduced and provide an opportunity to improve the tax system.

Today at the International Plowing Match in Teeswater, ON (http://www.ipm2008.ca/), I got to see one of the most joyous shows I've ever seen: 8 tractors doing a square dance, with country music, a caller and a huge, responsive audience. Using antique Farmall tractors, the men who were dressed as country dancers (females were complete with wigs & skirts) wowed the audience with their driving precision and hilarious antics. If you've never seen one, try looking it up on YouTube, and you'll see some great examples. The IPM does an amazing job of promoting farmers and the importance of agriculture.

Now at home, I still smile just thinking about it.

But, as always, reality barges in. Although the farmers are feeding cities and taking losses, we just watch the farmers dance. 

Last night as I presented my "Inconvenient Truth" presentation and again came to a slide that include in every presentation.  The old addage that history repeats itself can be considered very appropriate as when I think of Winston Churchill in 1936  saying that we were in a period of consequences.

 We are now in another period of consequences.  We could take time to continue to debate the issued of environment, environment vs economy, and other issues related to the enviroment or we as an energized population we can take our surroundings in hand and deal with Global Warming. The time for action is now and we must not let the politicians forget.

 The media and our politicians have started to vere away from talking the environment and we cannot let them forget. 

Get Active. Get Questions out to the organizers of your local debates.  Ask questions and talk to your friend.

 We Are in a "period of consequences."  Lets not miss the opportunity to create solutions. 

At this time of year, we tend to be focused on the first day of school, realizing that the days of fun in the sun are finished (except for homeschoolers like me who get to enjoy the quiet beaches for another month).

In the media, this year, the big juicy piece of news is the immediate possibility of an election, and it is possible that the environment could be a ballot question this year.  In order to keep climate change at the top of the agenda, some people came up with a great idea to let aspiring politicians know that climate change was important to them: they formed a non-partisan group called Voters Taking Action on Climate Change. On their website, you can order a lawn sign that you can put up on your property that shows that you care about the climate crisis enough for it to be the question you will be acting on when you go to the polls. Take a peek! http://www.vtacc.org

Hurricane Katrina, melting ice, drought, flooding - all indications of climate change. Add another - rain, rain, rain.

Eastern Canada (where I live) is experiencing roughly a 50% increase in precipitation over the last three decades. Generally this increase doesn't seem to be noticed, until this summer; the wettest on record.

It is almost the middle of August and we have had virtually two straight weeks of rain. I have had one available day to mow the lawn in the last two weeks. The stream beside my home is running like it is April not August. I wouldn't want to own a golf course this summer.

I have presented the live version of An Inconvenient Truth 65 times - one of the slides illustrates the increase and decrease in precipitation around the world over the last few decades. A few people have asked me after the presentations what the difference is between weather and climate. My answer goes something like this...

If the climate is Wayne Gretzky's or Gordie Howe's career then the weather is one game. Weather is what is happening right now. Climate is essentially a running 30 year average. There are good days (games) and bad days (games).  

Gretzky and Howe had stellar careers and generally predictable results year over year - a bit like the climate. But how they did in any given game was anyone's guess (weather), yet somewhat predictable. Like weather there is good chance it will by sub-zero in February and warm in July, but how warm or how cold, or how much snow or rain on a given day - who knows.

Bottom line - the rain this summer is a drag.

As a municipal councillor, I often have to face the reality of other levels of government downloading their costs and/or responsibilities onto municipalities.

A new report from the Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee details the problems the engineers are expecting in the following areas:

• stormwater and wastewater; 

• water resources; 

• roads and associated structures; and  

• buildings.  

You can see the report here: http://pievc.com/e/doc_list.cfm?dsid=4 and a news article on it here:

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=dce7983b-40ca-413b-a9f4-deff482890d6

I am worried that municipalities will have to bear the brunt of the cost of these upgrades, because most of the problems are likely to happen in municipal jurisdiction, and we can't trust the provincial or federal governments to share the costs. People in smaller municipalities may not be able to deal with the backload, especially in rural northern communities that will be hit the hardest.

So folks, to tie it all together, now we have another reason why we should all be addressing climate change right now: to keep our property taxes from skyrocketing! 

Found something that caught my attention featured on the menu at a newly open pub The Iron Duke located at Wellington Street in Kingston, Ontario. No not an interesting appetizer, main course or even desert, but a statement of what the pub is doing to help the environment.

Going For Green

Here are a few things we are doing to help keep our world healthy:

√          All of our take-out cutlery and containers are fully compostable

√          Our dishwashers are the most eco-friendly units on the market

√          We avoid using garbage bags wherever possible

√          Our used fryer oil is recycled into biodiesel fuel

√          We buy products from local stores and suppliers

√          We recycle

√          Our restroom lights operate by motion sensors

√          All of our dining room lights have dimmers

√          Our programmable thermostat is set to adjust the temperature

            each night after closing

√          Our menus are made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper

√          We compost our food waste

√          We purchase our condiments in bulk and serve them to you in

            washable containers 

The Duke is always looking towards greater sustainability.We will continue to search for ways to minimize our environmental impact.

Well they got my order; also they featured local Ontario Crafted Beers such as Beau’s Growlers.There are many pubs, restaurants, bistro’s that are doing their part for the environment and for charities within the communities that you reside in or visit. Peter Corbyn of GreenNexxus mentioned the Wooden Monkey located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Please feel free to use the comments section to feature your local eatery that is making a difference in your community or any other suggestions for lowering environmental impact within our restaurants.

Bon Appetite

It's a big word - REVOLUTION!

Dramatic change, radical alteration, sea change, metamorphosis, transformation, 

innovation, reorganization, restructuring; informal shake-up, shakedown. 

Thought about it? Time for change, I'd say.  Time to shift paradigms in our society toward sustainable practices. Time to understand how our actions affect the world and each other. Time to get real about comprehending the full cost of our actions and becoming accountable for every step of what we need, use, want, desire.

Think about the computer you're using. What raw ingredients from mines were needed to make it? How much recycled content? Where did the ingredients get shipped from? Where was it put together? How far did it travel from the manufacturing facility? What resource input was needed to develop the programs you are using? Where does your electricity come from and what resources are used? Those are just a few of the questions we could be asking ourselves on things we buy and use every day. These are the questions that businesses and corporations could consider in their procurement policies. 

I believe that if people thought about these kinds of questions and could find easy answers, they would want to lessen their ecofootprint, their carbon footprint, to help the world, cool the climate, save the planet. If people are educated, I believe they will be willing to change, to adapt to sustainable practices, to morph into environmentally aware human beings. To join the green revolution!

Shift happens? 

I believe.