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RR RUEHGA RUEHHA RUEHQU RUEHVC
DE RUEHOT #1323/01 1231738
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 031738Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY OTTAWA
TO RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2323
RUEAEPA/EPA WASHDC
INFO RUCNCAN/ALL CANADIAN POSTS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 OTTAWA 001323 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
WHITE HOUSE FOR CEQ CHAIRMAN CONNAUGHTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV ENRG TBIO CA
SUBJECT: U/S DOBRIANSKY AND CEQ CHAIRMAN CONNAUGHTON 
ADVANCE ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND HEALTH AGENDA IN OTTAWA 
VISIT 
 
 
¶1. (U) Summary: Under Secretary for Democracy and Global 
Affairs Paula Dobriansky and Council on Environmental Quality 
(CEQ) Chairman Connaughton visited Ottawa April 24/25 at the 
direction of the President and at the request of the Canadian 
Government to discuss a number of significant environment, 
energy and health issues.  It was clear from both the tone 
and substance of their meetings that the new Harper 
government is anxious to improve relations with the U.S. and 
to cooperate on a broad range of bilateral and multilateral 
issues, including air quality, climate change, Devils Lake 
and other transboundary water issues, alternative energy 
development and avian influenza. Canadian NGOs also expressed 
interest in a continued dialogue on promoting democracy. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Connaughton told Canadian interlocutors that the 
U.S. is committed to fulfilling commitments made on Devils 
Lake in the August 2005 press announcement.  He noted that 
Governor Hoeven of North Dakota will make decisions on the 
operation of the Devils Lake (DL) outlet and that the U.S. 
would convene a meeting of Canadian and U.S. technical 
experts to choose among three options for an advanced 
filtration system at DL, with a decision expected by the end 
of May.  Thereafter, the U.S. would proceed with design and 
installation work.  He also emphasized the need for further 
scientific studies throughout the Red River Basin and Lake 
Winnipeg to determine whether biota found in Devils Lake are 
already present in Manitoba, and told Canadian officials that 
if species from the lake pose no risk, both sides should be 
prepared to "declare victory" and turn our attention to 
preventing the introduction of invasive species into the Red 
River Basin. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Minister of Environment Ambrose signaled a major 
shift in Canada's climate change policy, indicating that the 
government would not negotiate new Kyoto targets and would 
not participate in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of 
the Kyoto Protocol.  Instead the government will pursue a 
"made-in-Canada" strategy aimed reducing greenhouse gas 
emissions.  She expressed interest in working toward Canadian 
participation in the Asia Pacific Partnership for Clean 
Development and Climate (APP), a forum, she said, that 
operates on principles that the new Canadian government 
shares.  Noting that President Bush and Prime Minister Harper 
discussed the APP in Cancun and agreed to have follow-up 
discussions in Ottawa, Under Secretary Dobriansky welcomed 
Canada's interest in the Partnership, and explained its 
objectives as well as its consensus procedures for expanding 
membership.  End Summary. 
 
¶4. (U) Key meetings during the visit of U/S Dobriansky and 
CEQ Chairman Connaughton included a breakfast with the 
Ministers of Environment, Natural Resources and Foreign 
Affairs, an interagency discussion on Devils Lake hosted by 
the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade 
(DFAIT), a discussion with Minister of Environment Rona 
Ambrose and senior staff on climate change and air quality, a 
meeting with the Deputy Minister of Natural Resources on 
alternative energy issues, and a business roundtable.  In 
addition, U/S Dobriansky met with senior Canadian health 
officials to discuss the way forward on avian influenza 
cooperation in the North American (SPP) context, and she 
engaged Canadian NGOs in a roundtable discussion on promotion 
of democracy. 
 
Devils Lake 
 
¶5. (SBU) Devils Lake was discussed in a number of meetings 
Q5. (SBU) Devils Lake was discussed in a number of meetings 
during the visit, with the most detailed discussion taking 
place at a meeting hosted by DFAIT on April 24.  Peter Boehm, 
Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) for North America was joined 
in the meeting by David McGovern, ADM for International 
Affairs at Environment Canada, as well as a representative 
from the Privy Council Office.  Connaughton told Canadian 
officials that both governments are implementing the elements 
of the framework agreed to in August 2005.  None of the 
original 13 species of concern to Canada and Manitoba were 
found in Devils Lake during jointly conducted biota studies 
last year.  The U.S. has conducted an engineering study of 
advanced filtration systems for the DL outlet and has three 
options to choose from -- one involving ozone treatment and 
two using ultra violet (UV) light treatment.  CEQ is 
convening a meeting of U.S. and Canadian experts to review 
the options, and hopes to have a decision on what type of 
advanced filtration system would be best.  Once an option has 
been selected, the U.S. will pursue design and construction 
of the system.  Obtaining funding for such a system will be 
 
OTTAWA 00001323  002 OF 005 
 
 
an important part of the effort, one that will require 
Congressional approval and, more specifically, cooperation 
from the North Dakota congressional delegation.  Regarding 
Canadian questions about whether North Dakota would refrain 
from pumping water until an advanced filter is in place, 
Connaughton said that decisions on when to pump water rest 
with Governor Hoeven, who is governed in his decisions by the 
permit issued for the outlet.  That permit has several 
restrictions based on water quality and water levels in the 
Sheyenne and Red Rivers.  The USG, he said, does not have 
authority to stop the state from pumping when it operates 
under the terms of the permit. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Connaughton emphasized that further scientific 
studies need to be undertaken as a matter of priority to 
solidify or modify preliminary conclusions about the lack of 
any current, significant risk to the Sheyenne and Red Rivers, 
as well as Lake Winnipeg, from biota in DL.  The 
International Joint Commission (IJC) is being asked to 
undertake this task, through their Red River Board, including 
testing and monitoring in Manitoba.  Funding these studies 
may cost on the order of $200,000.  Both governments will 
have to provide funding to the IJC for this effort. The CEQ 
Chairman also noted that if the studies further affirm no 
real risk, then both governments should recognize there is no 
need for an advanced filtration system and should be prepared 
to "declare victory" and move on.  He told Canadian officials 
that neither country required this level of mitigation for 
domestic water transfers unless there was an identified risk 
-- and thus far, there is no identified risk at Devils Lake 
that would justify construction of the advanced filtration 
system.  Alternatively, if a significant new risk is 
identified, he indicated Governor Hoeven already committed to 
immediately halting water transfers. 
 
Climate Change and Air Quality 
 
¶7. (SBU) Minister of the Environment Rona Ambrose and senior 
staff from Environment Canada and the Privy Council Office 
hosted a working dinner on April 24 to discuss air quality 
and climate change issues.  Ambrose made it clear that her 
government would not focus its efforts on meeting Kyoto 
Protocol targets, but would focus instead on reducing air 
pollution, counting on associated improvements in greenhouse 
gas emissions.  She also told Dobriansky and Connaughton that 
Canada will not pursue negotiations under Art. 3.9 of Kyoto 
on a second round of greenhouse gas emissions commitments, 
nor would it participate in the Protocol's Clean Development 
Mechanism (CDM).  She expressed interest in Canadian 
participation in the Asia Pacific Partnership for Clean 
Development and Climate (APP), noting that the government 
first needs to "get its house in order" by putting together a 
"made-in-Canada" solution to address climate change 
objectives.  Dobriansky briefed the Minister in detail on 
developments in the APP, including the outcomes from the 
January launch in Sydney, Australia and a recent meeting in 
Berkeley, California.  The U/S welcomed Canada's interest in 
APP and agreed that it would be useful for Canada to fashion 
its national approach to these issues and then see how it 
would fit into the APP context.  Dobriansky noted that there 
was a process outlined in the APP charter for expansion, and 
that Canada, Indonesia and a few other countries might be 
good candidates for inclusion when the time is right. 
Qgood candidates for inclusion when the time is right. 
 
¶8. (SBU)  Ambrose explained her government's interest in 
adopting a "Clean Air Act" for Canada and said the government 
would shortly put forward legislation.  She said that Canada 
could learn a lot from the experience of the U.S. and its 
success in reducing harmful air pollutants, specifically with 
regard to the use of cap and trade systems and other 
market-based measures.  Connaughton highlighted significant 
improvements in air quality that would result from policy 
decisions, technology improvements and new regulations in the 
U.S.  He noted that the Clean Air Interstate Rule and 
associated regulations would result in a 70 percent reduction 
in SO2 emissions from power plants in 28 states, a 60 percent 
reduction on NOx emissions and a 70 percent reduction in 
mercury emissions by 2015.  He also explained that more 
stringent air quality standards, the removal of sulfur from 
diesel fuel and the introduction of new clean-burning diesel 
engines in the U.S. would dramatically improve air quality in 
the U.S. and ease the associated air quality concerns of 
Ontario and Quebec.  Dobriansky and Connaughton repeatedly 
emphasized the need for "mass produced outcomes" in 
addressing both air quality and climate change issues.  As an 
example, Connaughton noted that China's decision to improve 
 
OTTAWA 00001323  003 OF 005 
 
 
efficiency at its power plants by 20 percent by 2020 would 
have a huge impact on both air pollution and greenhouse gas 
emissions, dwarfing the impact of small and isolated projects 
such as those being considered under the CDM of the Kyoto 
Protocol.  He also emphasized the need for focus on efforts 
that bring about improvements in air quality and greenhouse 
gas emissions on a profitable basis and those that have a net 
social benefit (such as demonstrable health benefits), rather 
than those that have a net social cost.  U/S Dobriansky took 
the opportunity to reiterate the U.S. invitation for Canada 
to become a partner in the Coalition Against Wildlife 
Trafficking (CAWT), and noted the link between wildlife trade 
and public health.  Minister Ambrose said they would explore 
membership. 
 
 
Energy Discussions 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Clean and alternative energy programs:  U/S 
Dobriansky and Chairman Connaughton discussed a range of U.S. 
clean energy programs, emphasizing the connection between 
energy security and sustainable development.  At the Business 
Roundtable, Chairman Connaughton noted that there are 
considerable profits to be made in methane recapture, but it 
is up to governments to figure out how market forces can be 
brought to bear, especially in countries such as China and 
India.  One industry representative commented that the energy 
industry itself needs to embrace energy efficiency, for the 
sake of continued markets and the energy industry,s own 
long-term interests.  Chairman Connaughton observed that 
among other advantages of clean coal, the continued use of 
coal by the United States and Canada would take pressure off 
worldwide petroleum and natural gas supplies. 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  At Natural Resources Canada, U/S Dobriansky and 
Chairman Connaughton discussed the relationship between 
energy security, economic growth, GHG mitigation, and 
pollution control with Deputy Minister Richard Fadden and 
other senior officials.  The Deputy Minister noted that the 
GOC is trying to create a regulatory regime that consciously 
balances environmental concerns with economic growth.  He 
also noted that there are many opportunities for U.S.-Canada 
cooperation in areas such as nuclear energy, clean coal, S&T 
coordination, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and streamlining of 
regulatory regimes.  U/S Dobriansky emphasized the importance 
of cooperative S&T, observing that technology development is 
the core of U.S. clean and alternative energy programs. 
Deputy Minister Fadden remarked that clean coal must be shown 
to work in North America, commenting that it is up to the 
U.S. and Canada to prove that clean coal technologies are 
effective.  Fadden also said that as a demonstration of the 
importance of continued U.S.-Canada energy cooperation, 
Minister of Natural Resources Gary Lunn himself would lead 
the Canadian delegation to next week,s meeting of the North 
American Energy Working Group in Washington. 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  Chairman Connaughton visited Iogen, an 
Ottawa-based company that is a leader in the development of 
cellulose ethanol.  The visit was made in support of the 
President's Advanced Energy Initiative.  Accompanied by CEO 
Brian Foody, the Chairman toured Iogen,s laboratories, where 
the company manufactures enzymes that are used to break down 
plant fibers, as well as its extensive test facilities for 
fermentation and production.  The company is finalizing plans 
for its first commercial bio-refinery likely to be in eastern 
Qfor its first commercial bio-refinery likely to be in eastern 
Idaho, where Iogen has signed contracts to purchase barley 
and wheat straw from more than 300 farmers.  Under Iogen,s 
processes, each metric ton of plant fiber produces about 75 
gallons of ethanol. 
 
Avian Influenza 
 
¶12. (U) U/S Dobriansky met on April 24 with Ian Shugart, 
Senior ADM at Health Canada, and with David Butler Jones, 
Chief Public Health Officer and head of the Public Health 
Agency of Canada, to discuss North American cooperation on 
avian and pandemic influenza.  Dobriansky noted that 
President Bush and Prime Minister Harper had recently 
discussed avian influenza at their meeting in Cancun, 
focusing on the need for better coordination through the 
establishment of a trilateral mechanism on border issues 
related to North American responses to possible outbreaks of 
the disease.  She told Shugart and Jones that she had been 
designated as the U.S. foreign affairs point of contact (POC) 
for the trilateral mechanism and that the health POC would be 
William Steiger, the Director of the Office of Global Health 
 
OTTAWA 00001323  004 OF 005 
 
 
Affairs and Special Assistant to the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services for International Affairs.  Dobriansky asked 
about how the GOC would organize itself and when the three 
governments might be able to meet, suggesting the June 6/7 
meeting of the International Partnership on Avian and 
Pandemic Influenza in Vienna as a good opportunity.  Shugart 
said that the GOC is close to designating its POCs and 
alternates for the trilateral mechanism and should be ready 
for a meeting in Vienna. 
 
¶13. (SBU) Dobriansky asked about GOC funding for avian 
influenza, and in particular, whether there would be any 
change in the Canadian pledge given in Beijing as a result of 
the election in January.  Shugart said the Beijing pledge was 
a summary of decisions already made to that point, and that 
the new government had not made decisions on large 
investments yet.  However, contributions to organizations 
such as the WHO and FAO are being considered.  The new 
government understands the importance of this issue, he said, 
noting that there was good cooperation between the several 
ministries involved -- health, agriculture, foreign affairs 
and public safety.  The budget will be presented by the 
government on May 2 and may show more details of how avian 
influenza programs will be funded.  Shugart expressed 
interest in asking the World Bank to report in Vienna on 
progress that has been made since Beijing.  He noted that 
Canada was prepared to provide leadership on vaccines and 
that cooperation between Canadian and the U.S. authorities 
(FDA) on the regulatory approval processes was good. 
Dobriansky acknowledged Canadian interest in our national 
implementation plan for avian and pandemic influenza and 
promised to share the plan with Canada formally. 
 
Promotion of Democracy 
 
¶14. (SBU)  U/S Dobriansky met with a number of leaders of 
Canadian NGOs and quasi-governmental organizations to share 
with them the U.S. vision of democratization in the world and 
to hear from them ideas of where the U.S. and Canada could 
better cooperate in the world.  The organizations included 
the Forum of Federations, Canadian Foundation for the 
Americas (FOCAL), the Parliamentary Centre, Friends of Sudan, 
Peace Dividend Trust, Elections Canada, National Judicial 
Institute, and Pearson Peacekeeping Centre.   The U/S laid 
out the U.S. vision for transformational diplomacy, good 
governance, and democratization, with both global and 
specific examples (e.g. BMENA, Forum for the Future, MEPI, 
Community of Democracies) of what we believe is working and 
where we can collaborate more closely.  The Canadian 
representatives shared their views on a number of regional 
issues, suggesting that closer collaboration would help us to 
better advance our shared agenda in democratization and good 
governance.  Haiti, on the one hand, is one of the best 
examples to date of consistent U.S.-Canadian cooperation over 
a sustained period of time, while Cuba is a place where 
Canada needs to work alone to have a positive impact.  The 
Director of the Parliamentary Centre summed up the sentiment 
of the group when he asked if it would be possible to move 
beyond occasional ad hoc discussions with the U.S. to a more 
consistent dialogue as we seek to find synergy in our efforts 
to improve governance and strengthen democratic organizations 
around the globe.  The group agreed that such a four-way 
dialogue between the USG, GOC, and NGOs from both countries 
Qdialogue between the USG, GOC, and NGOs from both countries 
would pay huge dividends for all the parties. 
 
¶15. (SBU) Comment:  This visit clearly reflected and 
contributed to a more cooperative relationship between the 
U.S. and the new Canadian government.  Canadian ministers and 
their staffs went out of their way to make themselves 
available for meetings and to show their desire for closer 
cooperation on a broad range of issues, both bilaterally and 
in multilateral forums.  We believe it was particularly 
helpful to clarify our position with regard to implementing 
our agreed framework from August 2005 on Devils Lake.  We 
will have to remind the GOC of the importance of moving ahead 
quickly with further scientific studies and monitoring, 
particularly in Manitoba, to determine whether biota from 
Devils Lake pose a real risk or not.  Discussions on air 
quality and climate change demonstrated that their are great 
opportunities for closer cooperation and sharing of U.S. 
experience, especially as the new government moves to draft 
and introduce new air quality legislation.  And we urge 
Washington to be as forthcoming as possible with regard to 
Canadian interest in joining the APP.  Minister Ambrose made 
it clear that her government sees the need for fashioning a 
"made-in-Canada" approach to air quality and climate change, 
 
OTTAWA 00001323  005 OF 005 
 
 
but she was also anxious to align Canada's policies for 
participation in the APP.  End Comment. 
 
¶16. (U) This cable was cleared by Under Secretary Dobriansky 
and CEQ Chairman Connaughton. 
 
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa 
 
WILKINS