THE GALLON ENVIRONMENT LETTER
Canadian Institute for Business and the Environment
506 Victoria Ave., Montreal, Quebec H3Y 2R5
Ph. (514) 369- 0230, Fax (514) 369- 3282
Email cibe@web.net
Vol. 3, No. 6, February 20, 1999
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CANADA CANADA CANADA CANADA CANADA
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POSSIBLE NEW CANADIAN INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
The Ontario Centre for Environmental Technology Advancement
(OCETA) and the Industrial Research Assistance program (IRAP)
have been developing an Industrial Technology Assistance Program
(ITAP). Under this program, manufacturers will receive managerial
and financial assistance to reduce costs and increase efficiencies.
Designed for small and medium-sized manufacturers, ITAP anticipates
that up to 50% funding will be provided for environmental audits and
feasibility studies to identify how companies can reduce energy usage
and waste while improving performance and their bottom line.
For more information, call Dr. Ed Mallett, President OCEATA at ph.
(519) 575-4795 or email ebsctt@oceta.on.ca.
Visit the OCETA website at http://www.oceta.on.ca
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ATTEND THE CEIA/OCETA WORKSHOP ON NEW INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
On February 18,1999, the Ontario Chapter of the Canadian Environment
Industry Association (CEIA), along with IRAP and the Canadian
Technology Network (CTN) will present an "Environment Research
Assistance Seminar". The one day seminar will include program overviews
of IRAP and CTN, and presentations and case studies on sustainable
development. Dr. Ed Mallett will describe OCETA's collaboration with
IRAP in developing the Industrial Technology Assistance Program.
This event will be held at the Best Western-Carlton Place Hotel,
33 Carlson Court, in Toronto. For more information, contact Richard
Abbott, ITAs for IRAP at 905-570- 7175 or via Email
richard.abbott@irap.nrc.ca or Tom Armstrong, Executive
Director of CEIA Ontario at ph. 416- 447- 2456 ext. 27 or
email tarmstrong@ceia.on.ca. Visit the CEIA Ontario Website at
http://www.ceia.on.ca
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ALBERTA GOVERNMENT CHALLENGED ON GAS WELL MISMANAGEMENT
The Government of Alberta and its Environment Ministry are being
challenged to reverse their decision to let the oil and gas industry self
regulate on a voluntary basis. Other economic interests including
agriculture, horse ranching, tourism, and small business have formed
a new association to protect themselves from the economic and health
impacts of oil and gas well pollution. The Citizens' Oil & Gas Council
(COGC) of Alberta has created the Community Defence Fund. The purpose
of the Fund is to raise funds that will then be used to provide legal,
technical and financial support to citizens and communities who find
themselves in conflict with the activities of the oil and gas industry.
The Council based in Calgary, states that, "There is clearly growing
public concern about the impacts that the oil and gas industry on fish
and wildlife, forests and farm lands, surface and ground water quality,
air quality and ultimately on human health." Michael Sawyer, Interim
Executive Director of the COGC, said that, "the Community Defence
Fund provides an unique opportunity for concerned citizens everywhere
to support community efforts to achieve equity and fair economic treatment
related to disproportionate advantage of the oil and gas industry". For more
information contact the Citizen's Oil & Gas Council, Suite 203, 1225A
Kensington Road NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 3P8, ph. (403) 270-3455
email sawyer@rmec.org
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CANADA'S NATURAL RESOURCES MINISTER PUSHES FOR ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF ACHIEVING KYOTO
Canada's Natural Resources Minister, Ralph Goodale, is promoting
greenhouse gas emission reduction as an economic advantage.
Goodale told a Calgary Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting that
by leading the way in cutting greenhouse gases, Canada will be in a
position to sell its technology to the world. He said Canada's energy
industries have already made impressive technological strides, and
through federal partnerships and with federal incentives, he expects
them to make more. Goodale stated that, "for the Canadian natural
resources sector as a whole, my over-arching objective is to establish
Canada as the world's 'smartest' resources developer and user -- the most
productive and competitive, the most socially and environmentally
responsible, and the most technologically proficient." Source, "Going
Green Will Net Green", Calgary Sun, January 19, 1999. The full article
can be found at website http://www.canoe.ca/CalgaryBusiness/cs.cs-01-19-0064.html
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NTREE TO HOLD ROUND TABLE ON DOMESTIC CO2 EMISSIONS TRADING
Canada's National Round Table on the Environment and the
Economy (NRTEE) is holding an international workshop entitled
"Domestic Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Programs -- A
Comparison of Progress Around the World", on March 1-3, 1999,
in Toronto, Canada. It will examine emissions trading schemes
under consideration by a number of Annex 1 countries. Speakers
from government departments and research agencies in Australia,
Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the United States, among others
will present information on their national policy process and on the
trading program designs being examined in their country. Other topics
to be discussed include allowance distribution and/or auction, emissions
source coverage, use of credits from sources outside of the trading
system, links to international flexibility mechanisms and pilot programs
for greenhouse gas emissions trading. Denise Johnston, The National
Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 344 Slater Street,
Suite 200, Ottawa, Ontario K1R 7Y3, fax 613-992-7385, e-mail
johnstond@nrtee-trnee.ca Website http://www.nrtee-trnee.ca
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WHEN HARMONIZATION BECOMES DISHARMONIZATION FOR CANADA'S ENVIRONMENT
The provinces convinced Canada to sign an accord to achieve
environmental harmonization and avoid duplication of efforts
effective January 29, 1998. It essentially resulted in federal
environmental protection powers being substantially reduced
in the provinces. Now, it has been a year, and we are beginning
to learn that instead of harmonizing environmental regulations and
enforcement measures, the harmonization agreement is leading to
environmental enforcement disharmonization in Canada. The
provincial governments are moving in their own directions at various
paces of environmental deregulation, each doing a different thing.
Alberta is already suffering the effects with citizens up in arms about
the lack of control of the oil and gas industry extraction techniques in
that province. Ontario has stopped its annual reporting on industrial
pollution point discharges to the province's waterways. Quebec has
devolved much of its responsibilities to the municipalities without
providing them with any resources to do it.
The Canada wide standards that the Canadian Council of the Ministers
of the Environment (CCME) are supposed to be preparing are taking
much longer to complete. They may be weaker than other standards. And
there is no legal authority under which they can be effectively enforced.
They, in all likelihood will become guidelines which provinces may, or
may not, enforce. Ironically, for national governments, it is understood
that the best way to harmonize law is to write it and enforce it at the
national level, with an appropriate buy in from the provinces. It is also
understood that the best way to promote disharmonization is to hand
the responsibility over to a committee of diverse parties like the
provinces. See the Canada Wide Harmonization Accord at the CCME
website at http://www.mbnet.mb.ca/ccme/
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CELA CHALLENGES HARMONIZATION IN COURT
The Canada Wide Accord on Environmental Harmonization is weakening
the federal ability to protect Canada's environmental health, and is not
legal, according to a court case launched by the Canadian Environmental
Law Association (CELA) January 12, 1999 in Toronto. CELA feels that
the provinces have pressured the federal government to give away federal
powers that it can't give away, under Canada's constitution. A press
release issued by the laws stated that, "the Harmonization Accord will devolve,
without a constitutional amendment much of the federal government's
responsibility to the provinces at a time when the provinces have
drastically cut their own powers to protect the environment. CELA launched the legal
challenge in the public interest, hoping to reverse the trend of environmental
protection devolution in Canada. For a copy of the press release contact
David McLaren, CELA Communications Coordinator, ph. (416) 960 - 2284, or go to
website http://www.web.net/cela/
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SAXE REPORTS THAT ONTARIO STILL INCHING FORWARD WITH DEREGULATING ENVIRONMENT
Environmental Lawyer, Dianne Saxe, reports that Ontario is inching
ahead with environmental deregulation. She reports that while recent
postings on the Environmental Bill of Rights website by the Ontario
Ministry of the Environment include good changes, like reducing
frequency of water monitoring (MISA) for dischargers that demonstrate
a history of compliance and restricting methanol in ground source
heat pumps, that are some deregulatory changes. They include proposals
to reduce requirements for pesticides licences for farmers; proposals to
change discharge and flow limits for 14 major polluters, that may increase
pollution. Contact Diane Saxe, 66 Russell Hill Road, Toronto, Ontario
M4V 2T2 ph. (416) 962 5882 Fax: (416) 962 8817 email: dsaxe@envirolaw.com.
Website at http://www.envirolaw.com
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ONTARIO WORKING ON NEW VOLUNTARY MEASURE
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment (MOE) is working on
a new model to support voluntary non regulatory environmental
measures (VEM's). It is working with the Canadian Chemical
Producers Association and six major chemical companies. The
chemical industry in Canada started one of the most successful
voluntary initiatives, "The Responsible Care" program. Their
leadership is being followed by many of the other industry sectors
including aluminum, utilities, and oil refining.
The Ontario MOE published a draft policy paper called, "Recognizing
and Encouraging Voluntary Actions (REVA) and Performance Plus".
REVA proposes a policy framework for voluntary incentive policy
for industry. Performance Plus+ is a proposal for a pilot demonstration.
Both are the result of ongoing work by MOE,"Industrial facilities that
voluntarily and consistently adhere to high standards of environmental
planning, performance and accountability, in excess of regulatory
requirements and in accordance with Ministry environmental objectives
and priorities would be accorded greater operational flexibility and
administrative efficiency in their relations with the Ministry".
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INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL
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TWO OF THE U.S.'s LARGEST ENVIRONMENT BUSINESS WEB SITES MERGE
Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF) website and
Sustainable Business.com (SB.com) have combined to produce a large
comprehensive website service for the environment business and industry.
The site will enable visitors to access a broad range of information and
business services, for both the environment companies, and for companies
seeking their services. GETF produces and manages a number of
environmental information networks including Global Network of
Environment & Technology (GNET®) and Earth Vision. Rona Fried,
Ph.D., President of Sustainable Business.com (SB.com) notes, "GETF
and SB.com have been working along parallel paths. By combining
our strengths, we are creating a portal website group for the world-wide
sustainable business community." The extensive Green Dream Jobs
database developed by SB.com will be accessible to GNET® and
Earth Vision visitors, while the business and technical daily news
service supplied by Earth Vision will be available through SB.com.
SB.com produces the highly acclaimed online trade magazine,
"Sustainable Business Insider." Another section, "Business Opportunities,"
helps green businesses find capital resources businesses post their need
for investors, partners, or distributors, and find capital sources through
Solicitations and Venture Capital/Finance listings. GNET® compiles an
extensive list of contract opportunities. Merging these capabilities will
allow people to efficiently find the resources they need. A joint project in
the works is an international database of sustainable business cases, an
online encyclopedia of company progress toward sustainability.
You can visit the GETF family of websites http://www.getf.org or
http://www.gnet.org http://www.earthvision.net
or http://www.iso14000.net http://www.techknow.org or
http://www.sustainableamerica.org
SB.com unifies the field of environment and business by providing
cross-sector information and networking opportunities. For more
information on Sustainable Business.com please visit the website at
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com For further information contact
Catherine Drennan, GETF Director of Communications and Public
Affairs, telephone 703-750-6401, email cdrennan@getf.org or Rona
Fried, President, Sustainable Business.com, tel. 516-423- 3277,
email rfried@bccom.com
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INDICATORS OF EFFECTIVE ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT
The Commission on Environmental Cooperation (CEC), based in
Montreal completed an excellent study entitled, "Indicators of Effective
Environmental Enforcement". The North American Agreement on
Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), obligates the Parties, Mexico,
Canada, and the United States, to effectively enforce their respective
environmental laws with the aim of achieving high levels of environmental
protection and compliance with environmental laws and regulations within
a specified framework of processes and activities. Pursuant to the NAAEC,
the Parties (the three nations) have additionally undertaken to report
annually on the obligations including data on enforcement activities. The Council of
the CEC is mandated to encourage effective enforcement by the Parties,
compliance with their respective laws and regulations and technical
cooperation towards that end.
Joseph Castrilli, a well known environmental lawyer, wrote the section on
"Environmental Enforcement & Compliance Indicators in Canada" within
the CEC study. He reported that, "few governments in Canada provide
criteria for defining what constitutes significant non compliance." And
stated that, "some levels of government are increasingly producing
compliance status reports", but that the,"adequacy of the content and
detail, particularly at the federal level, varies." He found that, "while
an important initiative, it still lacks adequate particulars, such as
company specific monitoring data." See the CEC website at http://www.cec.org/
or contact Gregg Block, CEC, Montreal, ph. (514) 350- 4300.
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NEW LIST SERVE PROMOTES NON CONSUMPTIVE BUSINESS FROM OTHER FOREST PRODUCTS
There are other economies based on forests that don't involve cutting
them down. Often clear cutting forests ruin their other economic uses.
The non consumptive economic side of the forests is not well understood
and has lost economic share to the business of clear cutting forests.
A new listserve has been created amongst scientists, economists, and
forest communities to better understand and promote non timber forest
products (NTFP). It is called the NTFP-Biocultural-Digest. The forest
economies that are threatened by the clear cutters include the harvesting
and selling of associated free range forest crops including edible ferns,
mushrooms, maple syrup, palms, gums and latexes, edible nuts,
fragrances, medicinals, and more. Included in non timber cutting
products are some animals and insects products that are renewable
and harvestable in standing mature forests that are not cut down.
NTFPs are harvested commercially and non-commercially (for
local population support) in all the world's forests. However, their
economy value is left out of most forest accounting books. The listserve
currently has over 600 members representing more than 25 countries.
To subscribe send an e-mail to majordomo@igc.org, leave the subject
line blank, in the body of the message put
subscribe ntfp-biocultural-digest <your e-mail address> .
If you have questions or problems you can contact the list editor
Eric Jones at email etjones@igc.org
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ARCO CHAIRMAN SAYS THAT THESE ARE THE LAST DAYS OF OIL AGE
The Chairman and CEO of one of the world's largest oil companies,
ARCO, Mike R. Bowlin, said that these are the last days of the golden
oil age. Speaking at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates' 18th annual
executive conference, Bowlin said the energy industry must respond wisely
or face the consequences. He said that, "global demand for clean energy like
natural gas, renewables, electricity and new energy technologies will grow
faster than the overall demand for energy, including oil and coal." he added
that, "ten or fifteen years from now there still will be a large and healthy
market for oil - of course. We hope that it would be a healthier market
than today. But it is also true that the market share for oil will
diminish, as the demand for other forms of energy grows." He added that, "the energy
equations of the 21st Century, focusing on alternative fuels,
will leave oil and gas companies with a critical choice, said Bowlin
"Embrace the future and recognize the growing demand for a wide array
of fuels; or ignore reality and slowly -- but surely -- be left behind."
You can view the whole speech at http://www.arco.com/corporate/news/SA020999.htm
For further information contact William Warren or Linda Dozier
at ph. (213) 486- 3384, or at E-mail arconews@arco.com
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DEBATE ON NUCLEAR POWER AS CLIMATE CHANGE AGENT IS BEING HOSTED IN N.Y.
The Society of Environmental Journalists and the Association of
the Bar of the City of New York is hosting a debate in New York
City on the subject, "Can Nuclear Power Help Reduce Global
Climate Change?" It will be held Tuesday, March 30, 1999, from
7:00 to 830 p.m. at the Association of the Bar offices at 42 West 44th
Street, New York, New York. The debaters will be For the affirmative
Maureen T. Koetz, Director of Environmental Policy, Nuclear Energy
Institute. For no nuclear power is not the answer, will be Edward
Smeloff, Director, Pace Energy Project, Pace University Law School.
For further information contact Dolia Christoffersen, ph. (212) 715-1191.
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NUCLEAR POWER DOES NOT HELP ON CLIMATE CHANGE
In England, several environmental organizations and councils of local
communities made submissions to the Royal Commission on
Environmental Pollution (RCEP), stating that their studies have found
nuclear power is not a "green energy source" that helps alleviate greenhouse
gas emissions. England's Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLAs) and the
Consortium of Opposing Local Authorities (COLA), also contend that even
if nuclear power were paid for their trade emission permits under carbon
trading, that they would still not be a cheap, or economical, source of
energy. A detailed study prepared for the Royal Commission by the
NFLAs and COLA shows that the lifetime cost of new nuclear stations
currently trail other major generating capacity by at least 2 pence per
kilowatt/hour (2p/kWh). A very rough estimate is that the nuclear power
companies may be paid for the C02 savings they generate by producing
nuclear electricity instead of coal fired electricity at a rate of about
0.2 pence per kilowatt hour (kWh), and, the groups point out, is one tenth
of the sum nuclear generation needs to become competitive. The groups
also stated that the prospects for substantially reducing the capital costs
for building new nuclear stations are poor. For further details contact
Stewart Kemp ph. 0161 831 9108, cellular 0468 743996 See email
nfznsc@gn.apc.org website http://www.gn.apc.org/nfznsc
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NUCLEAR POWER HELPS REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING
Nuclear power is the cheapest and cleanest fuel for France, according
to findings of an official study reported by the nuclear news agency
NucNet. The parliamentary report said nuclear power still retains a
cost advantage in producing electricity over gas but predicted the gap
would narrow in the future. The study said nuclear energy was the only
efficient technical option in the fight against global warming, The study
predicts that in the near future nuclear energy will be producing one
kilowatt-hour of electricity for 18-20 cents compared with combined-
cycle gas plants that will be producing power for between 16.5-20.5 cents.
If the cost of CO2 emissions were factored into the cost of electricity
production the extra cost to gas per kilowatt hour would be in the order of
6 to 7 cents, the study said. Source, © Reuters Limited 1998.
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TRI POINT SOURCE DISCHARGE MAP AVAILABLE FOR U.S.
All data submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
under the Toxic Release Inventory reporting requirements have been
mapped for public review and analysis. It is part of a new prototype
multiple toxic point source web map project. It not only shows TRI air releases
but also six additional sources of toxics plus schools, hospitals, and
parks.
You can zoom down through three layers, pan in all directions. View
reports by clicking on any of the ten different types of points (seven
toxic plus three landmark). It is provided by Michael R. Meuser, GIS and WWW
Mapping Application Development, under the Mapping for Community Right-
To- Know program of "making data make sense", Reach him at email
meuser@mapcruzin.com See it at the website http://www.mapcruzin.com/allfacmap.htm
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OBTAIN ALL UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS ON CD ROM
All 24 Volumes of Title 40 (Environmental Regulations/EPA) of the
U.S. Code of Federal Regulations have been updated to the latest 1998
revision levels. Title 40 CFR is available as part of an "All 50 U.S.
CFRs on CD-ROM" offering. The CD-ROM has 5,000+ inline graphics,
instant search/retrieval with Adobe(R) Acrobat(R) Reader, and PDF
format. See http://www.env-sol.com/solutions/CFR.HTML
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VISIT AUSTRALIA ENVIRONMENT ON LINE
For information on Australia's coastal environment, go to the
Australian Environment On-lineCoastNet. Sponsored by
Australia's Department of the Environment, CoastNet is an
Internet forum for exchanging information and sharing expertise to
improve coastal management in Australia. CoastNet has topical
discussion groups and contact lists; information on conferences,
workshops and meetings; on-line manuals and reports; details on
community monitoring programs; and bibliographic reference material.
This site also links to related resources and programs like the Coastal
Atlas, an electronic atlas or gateway drawing together the country's
combined data holdings for the coastal zone. Website
http://www.environment.gov.au/marine/coastnet/index.html
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Copyright (c) 1999 Canadian Institute for
Business and the Environment, Montreal
All rights reserved.
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