Member Motion On Black Liquor

From NDP MP John Rafferty:

April 21, 2009 — Mr. Rafferty (Thunder Bay—Rainy River) — That, in the opinion of the House, the government should move immediately to support the struggling forestry sector by: (a) extending and securing loan guarantees to companies in need; (b) countering the United States ‘‘Black Liquor’’ subsidy for the pulp and paper industry through negotiation prior to June 1, 2009 or by introducing similar supports in Canada as soon as possible; and (c) convening a national stakeholder summit to address the severe and ongoing crisis in the sector.

Since "introducing similar supports" means paying the P&P industry to increase their carbon footprint in the name of alternative fuels, that's not on (is crazy, in fact).

Nevertheless, the U.S. government has in effect introduced a protectionist measure worth $100,000,000s under the guise of green tech. It would be nice to see a more significant response from the Canadian government and the other opposition parties (or from Canadian environmentalists, or from U.S. ones, for that matter).