News Release - April 9, 2008 

VICTORIA - The Campbell government's new low-carbon fuel legislation fails the green test and will not reduce B.C.'s carbon emissions, say the Official Opposition.

"While the Official Opposition support the use of biofuels, we cannot support this legislation," says John Horgan, Opposition Energy critic. "It fails to address growing concerns about biofuels, including questions about food security and sustainability. And there is no discussion whatsoever about an alternative fuel strategy."

Horgan pointed out that the Bill leaves critical questions unanswered, including what types of alternative fuels should be avoided, what industries will be encouraged to use or develop alternative fuels, and the effect of these fuels on land use and our environment.

"We need legislation that puts a focus on sustainable biofuels, which rely on waste products instead of agricultural lands for production," said Horgan.

An Official Opposition motion to put such questions to a committee of the Legislature for review was voted down by the government. "The legislation as it stands is inadequate. And it is troubling that the government would rather forge ahead with bad policy than take a non-partisan approach and develop good policy," said Horgan.

Opposition Environment critic Shane Simpson seized on the Campbell government's move to make critical pieces of Bill 16 a secret, concerns shared by David Loukidelis, B.C.'s Information and Privacy Commissioner.

In a letter to the Energy Minister, Loukidelis expressed his concerns "about the significant encroachment that [Bill 16] represents on the overriding FIPPA policy of accountability through access to information--a particularly important consideration in relation to climate change measures and their enforcement."

"The only ones who benefit from the Campbell government's secrecy on climate change are big polluters, not the public," said Simpson. "It is time for the B.C. Liberals to introduce some transparency into this legislation - into their entire approach to climate change - and start being more open."

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