[FireFly]

The government would be better off politically, and the environment would also be better off if instead of buying pollution credits from other countries, the government would use the same amount of money towards tax breaks for 'green purchases' by Canadians. They're already giving tax breaks on energy efficient appliances and such, grow the program! Do it for hybrids and solar panels and wind turbines, etc. Don't stop there, give tax breaks to the oil companies for cleaning up their refineries as well. If you're willign to spend the money anyways, why not actually help the environment at the same time?