Response from Mike Farnworth (NDP)
1. BC has taken several important steps towards a lower carbon economy. What would you do to help the province achieve its targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 33% by 2020 and to position BC for the challenges and opportunities of a low-carbon economy?
I am committed to pursuing a comprehensive strategy to reduce net emissions among both consumers and industry. That strategy includes: shifting carbon tax revenue to public transit and green initiatives, expanding the carbon tax to include industrial emitters, launching an expansive program of retrofitting and a shift to focus on energy conservation and other demand-side programs.
2. In 2012, the province will be generating 3% of its revenue from the carbon tax, which will be a $1.1 billion incentive annually for investments in clean energy solutions. Do you support increasing the effectiveness and fairness of that incentive over time with tools like the carbon tax and cap and trade?
I believe carbon pricing is a necessary step to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and shift to a low-carbon economy. I would use carbon tax revenue to fund public transit and other green initiatives that complement efforts to reduce those emissions. That’s the coordinated approach that is needed to make a real impact. I also would extend carbon pricing to the industrial sector, while pursuing efforts to introduce a Cap and Trade system through the Western Climate Initiative.
3. While BC is home to more than 1900 species at risk, it is one of only two provinces in Canada without legislated protection of those species or their habitat. What would you do to protect endangered species and their habitat in BC? Would you consider stand-alone legislation to achieve this?
I strongly support the introduction of stand-alone species-at-risk legislation that is based on sound science and accomplishes protection of habitat, as well as re-population of the species. But we need to go even further if we are to truly provide protection to BC’s endangered species. I would provide appropriate levels of funding to ensure that any legislation has the enforcement required to make a difference. I also support fighting for federal enforcement of the Species at Risk Act which includes protection of BC’s orca whales as it is currently not adequately enforced, as well as honouring Conservation Covenants signed by all levels of government to protect unique habitats and ecosystems, such as Burns Bog.
4. BC has nearly completed land use planning across the province, but almost none of those plans considered the impact of global warming on a host of environmental and resource values. Would you consider additional conservation measures to protect the carbon storage capacity of BC’s forests while providing more chances for BC’s fish and wildlife to adapt to their changing environment?
The impacts on global warming touch every part of our province and it will require real leadership and marshaling of resources to adequately respond to the challenge. The forested lands of our province are critical to the health of our province. They are BC’s lungs. That’s why I have proposed a massive program of reforestation, identification and protection of old growth forests for carbon storage and habitat protection and restrictions on raw log exports. I have identified conservation as a top priority of a Mike Farnworth government to provide a greater degree of protection to BC’s wildlife, flora, fauna and sensitive ecosystems; that includes a commitment to end the commercialization and decline of BC Parks, restoring them to management as a public trust with protection from development. I also believe it’s vital to provide the critical funding necessary to ensure that our efforts are meaningful.
5. Many communities in BC and elsewhere across Canada have banned the use of cosmetic pesticides. Three provinces have banned their sale as a result. Do you think BC should prohibit the sale and use of chemical pesticides for lawns, gardens, and non-agricultural landscaping?
Yes, I strongly support this. In addition, I support the introduction of “Right to Know” legislation that requires labeling of products that contain toxins or carcinogens, which are harmful to human health and the environment.
6. BC is in the process of modernizing its outdated Water Act. Do you think protecting fish and wildlife should be a top priority in managing freshwater flows, as do more than 90% of British Columbians?
Yes. I support changes to the proposed Water Act that offer real protection for water supply and flow, not just guidelines. I also oppose the creation of tradable private water markets in the Act. I have proposed the introduction of groundwater protection legislation, and provincial support to regional integrated watershed management and shared water governance programs that make protection of fish, wildlife and water as a public asset the top priority.
7. BC’s precious coast is at growing risk daily from more oil tankers in the south, new proposals in the north, and increasing shipping traffic of all kinds throughout the coast. How will you protect BC’s fragile coastal ecosystems from oil spills, both large and small?
I have made protection of BC’s coast a top priority and have proposed a number of actions to ensure that happens. I support a ban on offshore oil exploration and on northern coastal tanker traffic. I have proposed increasing the number of Marine Protected Areas to achieve our international commitment to the Convention on Biological Diversity of at least 10%, which currently sits at 1.98%. I also support the protection of wild salmon by moving to closed containment salmon farming facilities, with a timeline to ensure it happens. I have also proposed the creation of “blue belts” to protect the spawning and migration areas of wild salmon.
