Canada’s biggest polluters are spewing more greenhouse gases than ever, despite promises that they would clean up their act. The country’s 15 most prolific producers of greenhouse gases emitted 7 percent more in 1997 than in 1990, according to a study by the Pembina Institute for Appropriate Development. “The data as a whole shows that voluntary action to address climate change has been altogether ineffective,” said Pembina’s Matthew Bramley. The study recommends that Canada move quickly to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and put in place a program of financial incentives to encourage a move to renewable resources. As Patrick Mazza of Climate Solutions writes in Grist, market-based government incentives for clean energy could give the burgeoning wind and solar industries the kick they need to become cost-competitive with polluting fossil fuels.
