US embassy cable - 05OTTAWA886

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 OTTAWA 000886 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
WHITE HOUSE FOR CEQ, STATE FOR OES AND WHA/CAN, BRUSSELS 
FOR USEU 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV, ENRG, CA, Kyoto, Stephane Dion 
SUBJECT: CANADA AND CLIMATE CHANGE: IDEAS FOR MOVING TO 
POST-KYOTO COOPERATION 
 
REF: OTTAWA 824 
 
1. Summary: Canadian Minister of Environment, Stephane Dion, 
and his staff are in the process of formulating their plans 
for COP-11 and post-Kyoto cooperation on climate change. 
Their current thinking is to engage international experts and 
key foreign governments in a dialog leading up to COP-11 in 
Montreal late this year.  They plan to focus the dialog on 
four key issue areas: 1) how to achieve deep reductions in 
greenhouse gases (GHG) while maintaining strong economic 
growth; 2) how to deploy currently available technologies 
broadly and to develop new technologies to cut GHG emissions; 
3) how to ensure/encourage efficient markets for GHG trading; 
and 4) how to build effective adaptation strategies.  Dion 
hopes that his dialog will help shape some nascent ideas on 
how to engage the U.S. and leading developing countries in 
future international climate change arrangements.  Canada may 
host a climate change technology fair in conjunction with 
COP-11 to highlight some promising technologies, and would 
like to encourage participation by U.S. companies. Post 
believes that Dion's initiative on climate change offers an 
opportunity for senior U.S. officials to engage Dion and 
Canadian counterparts in the coming months   End Summary. 
 
2. ESTH Counselor met on 3/23 with Jean Boutet, Special 
Assistant to Canadian Minister of Environment, Stephane Dion, 
to discuss GOC thinking on climate change issues in the 
run-up to COP-11 in Montreal later this year.  Boutet said 
that the dates of the meeting seem to be set for November 
28-December 9, with the second week set aside for ministerial 
level meetings.  He noted that the GOC is thinking of 
organizing a climate change technology fair to coincide with 
the COP.  Boutet said that he would let us know when a final 
decision on that idea had been made, but indicated that the 
GOC would be very interested in participation by U.S. firms. 
He asked if the USG could help to facilitate that 
participation if the GOC decides to go ahead with the 
technology fair.  He recognized the need for a quick decision 
to allow time for planning by possible participants.  Boutet 
said the GOC is expecting 10,000 international participants 
for COP-11, an audience of officials and experts that should 
be an attraction for companies with new or innovative 
technologies. 
 
3. In the time remaining before COP-11, Minister Dion intends 
to consult widely with international climate change experts 
and foreign governments to get a good overview of the 
international views.  Prior to assuming the chairmanship of 
the COP, Dion's consultations would be informal, but once he 
assumes the chair, he is considering the use of a group of 
twenty or so countries for ongoing discussions.  Boutet 
didn't mention all the candidate countries for this advisory 
group, but indicated that the U.S. would certainly be a part 
of it.  Other countries he discussed included China, India, 
Argentina, Brazil and Iran.  He specifically asked if the 
lack of bilateral relations between Iran and the U.S. would 
make Iran's participation problematic for the U.S. 
 
4. According to Boutet, Dion's dialog with international 
experts and foreign governments will focus on four key lines 
of inquiry:  1) how to achieve deep reductions in greenhouse 
gases (GHG) while maintaining strong economic growth; 2) how 
to deploy currently available technologies broadly and to 
develop new technologies to cut GHG emissions; 3) how to 
ensure/encourage efficient markets for GHG trading; and 4) 
how to build effective adaptation strategies.  He told ESTH 
Counselor that Dion is particularly interested in clean coal 
and renewable energy technologies. 
 
5.  Boutet said that the GOC still expects to announce its 
domestic Kyoto implementation plan for "large final emitters" 
in a matter of weeks, not months.  The large final emitters 
plan will be based on sectoral GHG intensity targets. (A 
voluntary agreement with auto manufacturers is also close to 
announcement -- see reftel.) He suggested that Minister Dion 
is considering whether this approach might offer some basis 
for future international arrangements on climate change, if 
for example, there were world-wide sectoral targets on the 
use of best available technology in key sectors.  Boutet 
noted that China, India and other large developing countries 
would continue to build new coal power plants, for example. 
But the impact of the continued use of coal would be 
mitigated if those countries could be persuaded to use the 
most GHG efficient technologies in building new or 
refurbishing old plants.  The same would hold true for other 
key sectors, such as cement, aluminum, etc. 
 
6. Minister Dion's ideas for moving beyond Kyoto 
internationally are, according to Boutet, an extension of his 
domestic emphasis on the relationship between strong and 
sustainable economic growth.  Dion sees GHG intensity targets 
as an effective means of achieving deep reductions in overall 
GHG emissions.  Dion recently heard from his UK counterparts 
that their cap-and-trade system has also been highly 
effective.  Boutet expressed enthusiasm for plans by the 
Quebec provincial government to greatly expand the use of 
wind power, particularly in conjunction with existing 
hydro-electric plants.  Wind and hydro power, he explained, 
are highly complementary and very efficient when used in 
tandem.  He said that the wind maps published by the GOC last 
year had spurred considerable interest in wind generation, 
especially in Quebec and Manitoba. 
 
7. Comment:  It is evident that Minister Dion would like 
close cooperation and dialogue with the U.S. in the run-up to 
COP-11 and as he assumes the chair for the year following the 
Montreal meeting.  Boutet noted that Dion had met with CEQ 
Chairman Connaughton and U/S Dobriansky recently at G-8 
meetings in London and that the Minister had invited them to 
visit Ottawa for more detailed discussions on climate change 
issues.  Embassy believes that such visits would be very 
useful in helping to inform the Canadian approach to climate 
change, both domestically and internationally.  We would also 
like to use such visits by senior U.S. officials to bolster 
ongoing Embassy efforts to explain U.S. policies and 
accomplishments on environmental issues more broadly to the 
Canadian Government, the Parliament and the Canadian public. 
Highlighting the strong U.S. record on environment, and 
climate change in particular, is all the more important given 
the emphasis on environmental issues in the "Security and 
Prosperity Partnership of North America" announced yesterday 
by President Bush, President Fox and Prime Minister Martin. 
We would warmly welcome visits by CEQ Chairman Connaughton, 
U/S Dobriansky, EPA Administrator Johnson and other senior 
officials and look forward to working with Washington 
agencies to make the necessary arrangements with the GOC. End 
Comment. 
 
 
 
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa 
 
DICKSON