Striking the green balance

Last week Liberal leader Stephane Dion embarked on his green tour of Canada and now Stephen Harper is following suit.

His tour ended in the oil rich province of Alberta where he announced he was doling out $156-million to the Alberta government to explore business-friendly ways to deal with greenhouse gas emissions.

He earmarked part of the money to explore carbon capture techniques, which sounds promising, but the exploration sidesteps the need for industries to take concrete measures to reduce emissions.

Most plans for carbon sequestration involve liquefying the gas and pumping it underground, which is an energy intensive procedure. While this technique is possible, many experts see it as prohibitively expensive because gases like carbon dioxide are difficult to store.

"All Canadians are looking for a balance between economic growth and environmental protection," said Mr. Harper. "Finding that balance is a fundamental challenge of our times."

But Harper's plan may carry the unintended consequence of irking both sides of the Kyoto debate because it doesn't actually reduce greenhouse emissions and the money could be wasted if the committee finds that the costs of carbon capture outweigh the benefits.

The money is part of $1.5-billion EcoTrust for Clean Air and Climate Change fund, but it will be handed out only if the federal budget, which is being tabled on March 19, passes.

Meanwhile, the Hill-Times speculated that the budget, and Harper's minority government, will fall, and a new election could be called for as early as May.