Suzuki Foundation Addresses Pollution Concerns

Why can't David Suzuki and his group buy an hour's tv time and stage an Juno like event where people right across Canada could listen to his message from the comfort of their homes or in sport bars. Is it possible that the message is not what they are selling? Read the comments.

I have one question. HOW DOES BUYING CARBON CREDITS OFFSET MY HAVING TO BREATHE IN THE POLLUTION IN MY HOMETOWN?

Crusading Suzuki finds it's not easy being green

MARTIN MITTELSTAEDT

From Friday's Globe and Mail

Even iconic environmentalists have to watch their step when it comes to doing anything that might possibly cause pollution.

Anti-pollution crusader David Suzuki, currently on a cross-country tour to raise awareness about environmental issues, has attracted that kind of attention, having been lambasted in one newspaper as a wrecker of the environment for using a greenhouse-gas-spewing bus to get around on his trip.

The criticism hits a nerve. "If we could have walked the distance, we would have," Jason Curran, a spokesman for the David Suzuki Foundation, said yesterday while riding the group's bus to in Calgary.

But in an era where hyper environmental sensitivities abound, the Suzuki organization, one of Canada's biggest anti-pollution think tanks, anticipated some might view it as hypocritical to talk about global warming and the environment, while burning fossil fuels to travel.

So the foundation pledged, before the tour began, that it would offset all of what it calls the "major" emissions of the trip.

That could be quite a pile of carbon dioxide.

On the 30-day trip, Mr. Suzuki is visiting more than 40 communities from St. John's to Victoria asking Canadians how they would fix the country's environmental ills, if they were Prime Minister.

But a trip of such a magnitude does create its own emissions problem. Mr. Curran said Mr. Suzuki has an entourage of at least eight people, and is lugging tonnes of gear, such as stages and sound equipment, riding in a diesel-powered bus similar to those rock stars and politicians use.

The mode of travel prompted an angry outburst from a Winnipeg Sun writer yesterday who, after Mr. Suzuki's trip to the city, said the environmentalist "may want to look in his own backyard before lecturing Canadians on how they're destroying the Earth" because his bus releases carbon dioxide.

But it's easier said than done to be green in Canada.

The organizers, for instance, had hoped the bus could run on bio-diesel, or fuel blended with oil derived from less polluting soybeans or canola. But using the more environmentally friendly fuel would void the engine's warranty.

So one of the people on the bus is keeping a record of every kilometre driven, every bit of air travel, each hotel visit, all other vehicle use, and ferry travel.

"At the end of the tour, we will calculate the total emissions from the tour, and purchase high-quality carbon offsets that support renewable energy and energy efficiency projects," said Paul Lingl, a climate-change specialist with the foundation. The group says it's buying what it terms "gold standard" carbon offsets from myclimate, a Zurich, Switzerland-based non-profit company that funds energy efficiency and renewable energy projects.

Under carbon-offset schemes, individuals and groups can claim their activities cause no net addition of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere by funding projects that fully offset their emissions. Rock bands such as the Rolling Stones and organizations that want to burnish their environmental image have been buying these offsets for years.

For instance, myclimate provides funds for ventures such as solar-powered water heating in Eritrea that is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 2,000 tonnes over the next 10 years.

Some critics have questioned how much these carbon offsets actually reduce emissions. But the Suzuki foundation says the offsets it is buying are independently verified.

The foundation estimates the bus alone might produce about 20 tonnes of CO2. It is paying up to $35 per tonne to offset these emissions.

Mr. Curran said the group had thought about using minivans, but figured three would be needed to do the same job as the bus. The group also estimates that bus travel is more environmentally sensitive than flying, the other alternative.

He said he tries to take criticism about the tour's carbon emissions in stride. "I take it with a grain of salt," Mr. Curran said.