Will the environment be a vanishing interest for Campbell too?

Gary Mason
Globe and Mail
Sep. 08, 2009

At one time, it was Five Great Goals for a Golden Decade, an ambitious bit of target-setting that was going to make British Columbians global leaders in everything from literacy to healthy living.

But soon the handful of worthy objectives would be mostly forgotten as B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell diverted his attention towards establishing his province as a gateway to Asia-Pacific fortunes.

With time, however, that, too, would become a policy enthusiasm that waned on the Premier's interest meter, with little progress made to forge closer trade ties with economic powerhouses such as China and India.

Mr. Campbell had moved on to health care, and the search for novel ideas to streamline costs and find new ways to deliver service.

He launched a costly province-wide Conversation on Health.

When the travelling road show failed to produce much of anything in the way of cost-saving innovations, health care was dropped as his cause du jour.

More recently, Mr. Campbell rebranded himself as the Green Premier, widely hailed by environmentalists for being the first major political leader in the country to introduce a carbon tax.

Other measures designed to cut greenhouse gas emissions were applauded by everyone from David Suzuki to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

But now many of those same people who once heaped praise on Mr. Campbell are wondering whether the environment is just another of his passing fancies.

Whether his call to arms on climate change is destined to become part of a political legacy increasingly littered with pet projects that go nowhere.

It's been just over two years since Mr. Campbell launched his campaign to combat rising greenhouse gas emissions.

Which is about the length of time the Premier has traditionally spent promoting a favourite cause before moving on to something else.

Fuelling fears the environment will soon join the Conversation on Health and other initiatives on the scrap heap of once great causes, have been recent cuts to programs and bodies considered to be at the core of the government's green agenda.

The Climate Action Secretariat, the body overseeing the government's many initiatives on the climate change front, has seen its budget reduced to $7-million from $20-million. Staff numbers have been cut too.

LiveSmart BC, a popular program that offered a range of cash incentives for homeowners who invested in energy-saving technology, was axed.

In its recent budget, the government introduced royalty changes to encourage unconventional gas development.

Many environmental organizations believe that one move alone will prevent the government from meeting its provincial greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.

The government was also criticized for offering Harmonized Sales Tax exemptions for residential energy use that reduce the incentive for families to make their homes energy efficient.

Matt Horne, director of the B.C. Energy Solutions Program for The Pembina Institute, is worried the inroads Mr. Campbell made in the last two years will be lost unless there is a renewed focus on his part to forge ahead with efforts to slash greenhouse gas emissions by building a greener economy.

“Climate change is a problem that is only going to be solved with an enduring willingness to make bold choices,” Mr. Horne said in an e-mail.

Environmental organizations are certainly a hard lot to please. Often, whatever governments do is never good enough.

The B.C. government's recent Speech from the Throne did indicate a continued commitment to developing alternative energy sources such as wind power. It announced a Green Energy Task Force will be formed to map out a plan to maximize the province's clean power potential.

Still, you can't help get the feeling that Mr. Campbell, while still ideologically dedicated to the climate change fight, has lost some of the fire he once had for the issue.

We'll know soon enough if the flame goes out completely and the environment becomes another of the Premier's vanishing interests.

Posted by Arthur Caldicott on 08 Sep 2009