Toronto received well at climate conference.
Toronto Mayor David Miller is among the contingent at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.
Stock photo
Mayor David Miller said the international environmental community is cool to Canada - but he said he was feeling the love for Toronto all day long at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit, where he's attending as co-chair of the C40 group of urban mayors.
"The federal government's comments and actions at the bargaining table has caused harm to our reputation," said Miller in a Tuesday afternoon teleconference from Copenhagen, Dec. 15. "But you also realize when you're here what high regard Toronto is held in. It makes me as mayor feel very, very good. It's a legacy of a lot of work - not just mine."
Miller made the comment reporting back on the C40 mayor's conference, which is an adjunct to the main summit in which leaders of industrialized nations attempt to hammer out an accord on greenhouse gas reduction.
The C40 group's goals were more modest - and Miller said they're moving to complete them, particularly signing a carbon funding pact that will allow municipalities to access green funding for projects that reduce their carbon footprint.
Miller has also been taking the federal government on more directly. Last week, he accepted a second place "Fossil Award," intended to shame Prime Minister Stephen Harper into committing to more ambitious goals for the reduction of greenhouse gas.
Miller said the anti global warming crowd was appreciative, and he was comfortable in the role of critic.
"It's fair to say that Canada has received some criticisms, and the Canadian government has taken positions that I've been critical of because they're wrong," he said. "They're flat-out wrong. And it's really quite damaged Canada's international reputation."
In the larger scheme, Miller is keen to see an accord which recognizes the role that municipalities play in fighting climate change. He said there are parts of the accord that in draft form at least do contain that language.
"Our goal here is two things: First to demonstrate how cities are acting so national governments can act, and secondly to ask national governments to engage in this and resource cities."
Miller said in general, the conference has confirmed for him that Toronto is on the right track environmentally. Although he noted that Copenhagen is much more bicycle friendly than Toronto. And he was impressed with the larger reliance on wind power.
When asked where he would like to see more windmills in Toronto, Miller replied that the Island airport would be a good spot.
"It's right in the middle of a wind tunnel - it would be a perfect place to provide green energy and once you have a rail linking the downtown to the airport you have no transportation reason at all to have an airport downtown," he said.