This month's unveiling of the federal government's Clean Air Act leaves the planet smoldering on the backburner. The Act is a disappointment, calling for more consultation and a wait of four years before regulations set any limits on greenhouse gas pollution from heavy industry. The bill, and the Notice of Intent to regulate that accompanied it, never mentioned Canada's international obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. While Kyoto requires Canada's emissions to be reduced starting in 2008, the government's approach has no national absolute target for greenhouse gas reductions until 2050.

Download Pembina's Preliminary Analysis of the Clean Air Act.

The Alberta government recently announced it would commit to strengthen the province's bioenergy sector but Pembina stressed that to realize the full potential of bioenergy and other renewable energy sources within the province, more action will be necessary. Read the media release.

The largest translation company in Ottawa, MKTG, has become the first firm in the city to take part in the Pembina Wind Power Program. Since she founded the company in 1992, president Masha Krupp has donated 10 to 15 per cent of MKTG's annual operating profits to charity, believing the practice of giving back to the community is an important part of building a successful business.

Read the media release.

Pembina staff Karen Campbell and Ellen Francis joined with women leaders from four different First Nations communities in northern B.C. to share their experience with the impacts of pipeline, oil and gas development with communities along the proposed Enbridge Gateway pipeline route. The "Pipeline Roadshow" kicked off in Kitimat then made its way through Hagwilget (Hazelton), Burns Lake, Fort St. James and Prince George.

British Columbia has significant untapped renewable energy resources and energy efficiency potential, making coal considerations unnecessary. Pembina's report Maximizing Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy in British Columbia, released on the eve of the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) convention, highlights the wealth of low impact electricity opportunities for B.C. The report supported the city of Abbotsford's resolution - which was voted on and passed at the convention - calling on the province to consider the full environmental impacts of coal generation, and to increase support for renewable energy and energy efficiency within the province.

Oil sands companies could achieve "carbon neutral" (no net GHG pollution) production for as little as a few dollars per barrel of oil. That's the conclusion of our report entitled Carbon Neutral by 2020: A Leadership Opportunity in Canada's Oil Sands. Rather than being seen by the international community as environmental laggards, the oil sands industry could be a leader in tackling climate change by slashing greenhouse gas pollution. The oil sands are projected to contribute up to 47% of the projected business-as-usual growth in Canada's total emissions between 2003 and 2010, making them the single largest contributor to GHG pollution growth.

Blues legend Bonnie Raitt shook the house with the audience dancing in the aisles at a benefit concert for Pembina on October 25. Pembina Executive Director Marlo Raynolds took to the stage to speak the sold out crowd of 2500.

More work is needed to ensure that land use planning policies are put in place to reduce urban sprawl in southern Ontario, says the Pembina report Building Sustainable Communities in Ontario: A Provincial Progress Report. Over the past three years the province of Ontario has taken major steps to modify its land use planning policies; however, these changes need to be translated into real action in the location and form of urban development in southern Ontario.

The twelfth United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP12) takes place in Nairobi, Kenya from November 6 to 17. Progress in meeting our Kyoto commitments will be in the spotlight. Matthew Bramley, the director of the Pembina Institute's Climate Change Program, will be one of the many NGO representatives attending COP12, and will call on Canada to take a leading role in making long-term GHG reductions sufficient to avoid dangerous climate change.

The Pembina Institute, along with over 40 Canadian youth groups from across Canada, actively participated in building a Canadian Youth Climate Coalition (CYCC) during a Canadian Youth Climate Summit in Toronto, on September 8-10, 2006. The CYCC has set out to tackle the biggest challenge of our generation, the climate crisis, by engaging young Canadians to take concrete actions on climate change in their schools and communities and by calling on governments at all levels to show real leadership and take action now. In support of this initiative, the Pembina Institute signed on to the CYCC Declaration and is inviting other Canadians to do the same. For information on the latest actions by the CYCC, please visit www.ourclimate.ca.

The Enbridge Pipeline route proposed for Northern British Columbia affects dozens of First Nations communities and raises some environmental concerns. A series of ten fact sheets describing some of the environmental problems associated with oil, gas and pipeline development were published as a resource for participants of the 2006 workshops, "Protecting Our Land: Resource Development in Aboriginal Communities".

The report is the fifth in a series of studies by the Pembina Institute on provincial legislation and policy affecting urban development in southern Ontario, focusing on provincial government initiatives between June 2005 and June 2006. The report assesses the government's overall progress on urban sustainability and smart growth issues, and highlights priority areas for action over the coming year.