Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that Canada’s Clean Air Act will be introduced in the House of Commons when Parliament resumes following the Thanksgiving break.

Designed to tackle air pollution and greenhouse gases, Canada’s Clean Air Act will take practical and achievable steps toward:

• Moving industry away from voluntary compliance toward strict enforcement;
• Replacing the current ad-hoc, patchwork regulatory system with clear and comprehensive national standards; and
• Instituting a holistic approach that doesn’t treat the related issues of pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions in isolation.

Moving industry away from voluntary compliance toward strict enforcement;

• The introduction of Canada’s Clean Air Act builds on earlier environmental initiatives from Canada’s New Government, including:
• Action to reduce the release of mercury into our surroundings;
• Reductions to the release of toxic substances from base metal smelters;
• New tax incentives for the banking of environmentally-sensitive lands;
• Funding for the development of renewable fuels; and
• The introduction of new infrastructure funding dedicated to public transit, as well as tax credits for the people who use public transportation.

Action to reduce the release of mercury into our surroundings;

All these measures have this in common: they are focused on outcomes and achievable results in creating a healthier ecosystem for ourselves and future generations over the long term.

These measures designed to improve Canadians’ quality of life are welcome after years of bungled Liberal stewardship, which saw:

• An 31% increase over the emissions targets set in Kyoto;
• A sharp decline in air quality in all major Canadian cities; and
• A slide to 28th (out of 29) in the OECD’s pollution rankings.

An 31% increase over the emissions targets set in Kyoto;

No more.

Canada’s New Government is going to replace cheap Liberal talk on the environment with action to clean up the air we breathe and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.