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Premier's Speeches
Remarks by Premier Rodney MacDonald
Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act
NSCC Water Technology Lab, 5685 Leeds Street, Halifax
Thursday 22 March 2007
Ladies and gentlemen, we are here this morning to begin outlining the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act that my government will be introducing in the Legislature later today.
I believe this bill is a vital part of our work to create a New Nova Scotia.
We will create winning conditions of success through a globally competitive business climate, a highly trained and skilled workforce, and opportunities from global connections. And we will seize opportunities, becoming a leader in information technology, R&D, innovation and the green economy.
The New Nova Scotia will balance economic development, social development and environmental protection.
There are some who may feel that protecting the environment is bad for business. Let me ask everyone here this question: are we rich if we have cash in our pockets, but the environment on which we depend is polluted and can't sustain us?
The health of the environment, the economy and the people of Nova Scotia are interconnected.
That's why the objective of my government's bill is to ensure future generations have access to clean air, lakes, rivers and streams. The act respecting environmental goals and sustainable prosperity will set a protected areas goal of 12 per cent of our total land mass. By 2009, there will be no net loss of wetlands. There will be new standards for municipal drinking water and wastewater treatment.
My government's bill will set an 18.5 per cent goal for renewable energy production; an EnerGuide rating for new housing construction; and it will set goals for reductions in mercury emissions, greenhouse gases, as well as adopting California-style emission standards for new automobiles.
Ladies and gentlemen, businesses, governments and citizens need to understand that the bar is being raised for all of us — and there is no opting out. Polluters fail to get the most and best out of our resources. Polluters rely on someone else to pay for their messy cleanup bills. Let's stop subsidizing pollution and waste.
I am proud of the bill my government is bringing forward, and I believe it will be one of our government's most important pieces of legislation.
My government's bill will challenge businesses, government, workers, homeowners and taxpayers to continue to reduce, reuse and recycle. We will have to use our assets more efficiently so we leave a smaller footprint on this world. After all, Nova Scotia is a citizen of a global community.I believe the scientific evidence that the climate is changing and that human actions are at least partly responsible. One thing is certain: everyone will feel the affects.
As one example, four billion people living in dozens of countries around the world are expected to face serious water constraints by 2025. This and other environmental issues force us to understand that our long-term future is at risk, in Nova Scotia and elsewhere.
On climate change: we must and we will play our part. A healthy economy needs a healthy environment, and strengthening our natural world is good business.
Ladies and gentlemen, we've invited you to NSCC's Institute of Technology Campus so you could see an example of how Nova Scotia is part of this global shift in attitude and environmental action.
This lab is for students in the Environmental Engineering Technology - Water Resources program. These Nova Scotians are gaining the important skills needed to help manage, protect and develop an essential resource — clean water.
Nova Scotians are already leaders in the green economy, and we can't stop now. Doing the same things won't be enough and won't get us better results. As we see here in this lab, we must continue to do more to be stewards of our lands and environment.
There are challenges ahead for the entire world in managing our environment. I believe this is the challenge of our generation, it is our shared duty, and there is no room for apathy.
Thank you.