A need for action

Randy Burton makes a good point in noting one of the reasons why new environmental legislation is needed sooner rather than later:

(W)ithout the much-abused Clean Air Act, the $345 million that Ambrose and Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl promised on Wednesday can't begin to flow. The whole program is based on mandating a national five per cent ethanol content in gasoline by 2010, which is part of the Clean Air Act. That's what guarantees the market for renewable fuels, and thus the market for the grain. In short, no Clean Air Act, no bonanza for Saskatchewan farmers...

Industry proponents believe both the Liberals and the NDP are on side with the objectives of biofuels. The trick lies in reaching a compromise on the bill that will allow the Opposition parties to support it.

Of course, there's no reason why the opposition parties shouldn't be able to cooperate to include the biofuel target (and, if possible, any applicable tax incentives as well) within a consensus bill to be fast-tracked before any final decision on next year's budget. But if some agreement can't be reached before the next trip to the polls, the Cons will receive an undeserved chance to further strengthen their rural strongholds - which will make it tougher for both the NDP and the Libs to reach their own electoral goals.