Merci, Mr. Robitaille.

It is indeed an honor to share this podium with such distinguished panelists.

I would like to begin by thanking the Conference of Montreal and Hydro Quebec for their kind invitation, and the City of Montreal, the Province of Quebec and the great nation of Canada for their warm hospitality.

Although I must admit, for a native Vermonter of French Canadian ancestry like me, visiting Quebec feels more like visiting family than appearing at an international economic forum in a neighboring country. It is a pleasure to be here again in your beautiful city.

Those of you who are new to Quebec may have noticed the license plates on the cars here. They all say, "Je me souviens" -- "I remember".

At first glance, you might think it expresses a tourist's fond memory of a great trip to Quebec. But it's much more than that. Carved over the doorway of the main entrance to Quebec's Parliament Building, it reflects the Quebecer's inseparability from his heritage. It says, "I will always remember who I am -- I will always remember where I came from -- I will always remember who came before."

Well, when I say "Je me souviens," I also remember my honeymoon, 20 years ago, in this very hotel!

I am Lieutenant Governor of the State of Vermont, just over the border in the United States. But when I am not serving the people of my state, I am a commercial airline captain, flying aircraft for a major US airline.

Je me souviens -- I remember -- the first time I flew into Shanghai, China. I remember picking up the Shanghai Daily newspaper. On the front page was a photo of an elected politician in a hug with a Chinese astronaut. They were celebrating the nation of China’s entry into the Space Club, joining Russia and the United States. As I read the paper I noticed an article on page seventeen, about a poll that had asked the Chinese people, “What is more important to you: for China to have a clean environment, or for China to be a leader in space exploration?”

Seven out of ten Chinese answered that they would rather have a clean environment.

While I was there, I learned the Chinese expression "Same Bed, Different Dreams”—illustrating how when people do not share common dreams, there can be conflict.

Good leadership is about creating “Same Bed, Same Dreams”. Clear vision helps us reconcile our need for energy with our need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Je me souviens -- I remember my first time flying into Los Angeles, descending out of perfectly clear skies at 5,000 feet -- into the smog-filled skies. I remember having to transition to instruments, because of the reduced visibility. I have seen the same conditions in Mexico City, Salt Lake City and other great cities.

Je me souviens. I remember -- just last week -- flying over coal-fired power plants of the upper Midwest of the United States, and seeing the smoke trails drifting northeast along the St. Lawrence River Valley.

I know as pilot the weather circles the earth from west to east -- from the smog of a developing Shanghai, to the inversions over Los Angeles and Salt Lake, to the fossil-fuel power plants of the US Midwest, to Vermont and Quebec. It seems we are all in the same global bed. And as
Quebecers will tell you, they are the tailpipe of North America. All of the emissions generated to our west exit our continent via Quebec.

How do we go about creating Same Dreams? How do we respond to our citizens' growing need for energy, while at the same time improving our air quality and seeking to decrease our contribution to global greenhouse gases?

In an economy driven by the marketplace, what can we in government do to help educate and inform the buyers about the consequences of their energy choices? What is the most appropriate role for government? Can we assist the marketplace in responding to the climate change challenge?

I believe that Kyoto has done a great job of creating “Same Dreams”. And I readily concede that the United States has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol. Yet, it has been one of the first countries to adopt measures to reduce greenhouse gases. Kyoto has spurred our market economy into action.

In July of 1999, the US Senate unanimously passed a resolution stating it would not ratify the Protocol unless rapidly developing countries, such as China and India, were also required to reduce greenhouse gases. In response, the Clinton administration declined to send the treaty to the Senate for ratification.

The Bush administration shares the view that Kyoto would unfairly penalize industrialized nations, threatening their economies. It has proposed its own climate change initiative, which calls for mandatory reductions in power plant emissions, incentives for emissions reductions, and increased research and development of new energy technologies.

Some have made the case that there is a direct correlation between pollution and poverty: the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and Australia, they say, have the most prosperity and the least pollution. The poorest are those with the worst pollution: Haiti, India, and China.
Researchers at the World Bank point to a bell-curve effect with regard to the relationship between poverty and the environment. As countries' per capita income moves upward toward $5,000, they say, pollution increases. But once per capita income tops $5,000, pollution begins to decrease rapidly.

Many policy makers in the US believe that maintaining economic strength is a prerequisite for limiting pollution. Still others believe that the US should ratify Kyoto. Like most issues in our country, debate on Kyoto is vigorous and free.

While on trade missions in Shanghai in 2003 and in Cuba in 2004, we witnessed a striking degree of air, water and ground pollution. While it may not have proved the assertion, it did graphically dramatize a link between poverty and pollution.

Meanwhile, a number of states in the U.S. have adopted their own climate change policies. And mayors of 141 US cities -- including Burlington, Vermont's largest city -- representing nearly 31 million citizens in 35 states -- have signed onto the Kyoto Protocol at the local level.

In my state of Vermont, it is a matter of well-established policy that energy decision-making must be done in such a way that our need for energy is balanced against our strong environmental ethic.

Today in Vermont, we have been fortunate to secure long-term sources of reliable power that do not contribute to carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide emissions. Thanks to our longstanding partnership with Hydro-Quebec and the government of Quebec, one-third of our power supply is from a clean, hydroelectric source. In addition, our investor-owned utilities led a syndicate that developed the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station. Today, that 510-megawatt facility provides another third of our energy supply. Both of these sources provide reliable base load power that supports our residents and businesses. The remainder of our power supply is a mixture of in-state renewable resources -- both hydro and biomass -- and market-driven bilateral contracts. We are very proud of the environmental profile of our energy portfolio where:

· 26% of our in-state generation is renewable. When we add it to our HQ power, more than 50% of our overall supply is renewable

· Vermont's aggregate -- which included greenhouse gas emissions per megawatt-hour of generation -- is nearly two orders of magnitude lower than the U.S. average, at 0.06 versus 1.42 tons per megawatt hour.

· Vermont places an emphasis on energy efficiency. Six years ago, we created a first-of-its-kind energy efficiency utility, called Efficiency Vermont.

Vermont has also joined the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative – a cooperative effort by northeast and Mid-Atlantic States to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

And in 2003, Vermont Governor Jim Douglas, by executive order, created a Climate Change Action Plan. It directs state government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from state government buildings and operations, including its vehicle fleet. It mandates that state government "lead by example".

Vermont's goal is to reduce emissions by an amount consistent with the recommendations of The Conference of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers Climate Change Action Plan -- to reduce region-wide greenhouse gas emissions from the 1990 baseline by: twenty-five percent by 2012; fifty percent by 2028; and, if practicable using reasonable efforts, seventy-five percent by 2050.

In the United States, and certainly in Vermont, the grassroots desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is working from the bottom up. An outstanding example of choice-driven, market-driven progress comes from a private electric utility, Central Vermont Public Service (CVPS).

Dubbed "CVPS Cow Power," this innovative program offers electricity to its customers that is generated from cow manure, which in turn helps Vermont farms and the environment.

Cow Power provides the dairy farmer with a valuable manure management option, to reduce runoff and improve water and air quality – while converting the farm's waste stream into an income stream. And it provides the customer the choice of a completely renewable energy source.

CVPS customers who choose Cow Power pay a premium of 4 cents per kilowatt-hour, which goes to Vermont farmers who produce renewable electricity generated by farm methane, produced by cow manure. CVPS will also purchase the electricity from the farmers at competitive spot market prices.
One such system, in full operation since January of this year, is at the Blue Spruce Farm, operated by the Audet family in Bridport, Vermont. To date, 1,700 households have opted into the program, putting its performance -- in just 5 months -- into the top-50% of similar projects in the US! Blue Spruce's 900 cows have the potential to generate 1.75 million kilowatts per year.

On the efficiency front, Vermont launched Efficiency Vermont, its first-in-the-nation energy efficiency utility, in March of 2000. Vermont established it in response to a request from the Vermont Department of Public Service, all of the state's twenty-two electric utilities, and a dozen consumer and environmental groups. The utility provides technical guidance along with financial incentives for Vermonters to reduce energy usage in their homes and businesses. In its five years of existence, Efficiency Vermont has generated -- through efficiency measures – a grand total of over 200,000,000 kilowatt hours of energy. Through Efficiency Vermont's efforts in year 2004 alone, Vermont saved more than 58,000,000 kilowatt-hours of energy.

This translates into preventing the emission of more than 500,000 tons of greenhouse gases!

In 2004, the Vermont Legislature also passed a Renewable Energy Bill, which promotes alternatives and offers options for consumers, and has actually fostered the development of renewable, direct-to-consumer sources of electricity. CVPS's Cow Power program is an example.

The State of Vermont has also just completed work on the final draft of its 2005 State Agency Energy Plan. As Governor Jim Douglas notes in his forward, "With this plan, state government will lead by example." It is a comprehensive action plan of more than 70 steps for state government to complete within an established time frame. "And", says Governor Douglas, "We will complete every one of them." The measures are aimed at conserving resources, saving energy and reducing pollution in new and remodeled buildings, existing buildings, the state fleet, employee commuting, and state purchasing practices. The plan also requires the state to devise a strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To quote the draft, "The plan shall include steps to encourage more efficient trip planning, to reduce the average fuel consumption of the state fleet, and to encourage alternatives to solo-commuting state employees for commuting and job-related travel."

In addition to curbing pollution, the plan's authors estimate that implementation will reduce the amount of total energy consumed by 25% to 35%. With State government's total annual energy costs rising over $20 million for the first time in fiscal year 2005, these savings represent between $4.31 and $6.03 million.

Like our Quebec neighbors -- and in large part, because of our Quebec neighbors, and clean Quebec hydropower -- we can attribute the vast majority of Vermont's greenhouse gas emissions to motor vehicle use. But as new transportation practices develop through implementation of the State Agency Energy Plan, we expect their usage and economies to overflow from state government into the private sector.

The fact is that the majority of our state’s greenhouse gas comes from the automobile. Market-driven, choice-driven change has already generated a vigorous demand for hybrid fuel automobiles -- not just in Vermont, but nation-wide -- as well as a growing distribution system and demand for biodiesel and ethanol, both on the road and on the farm. We must continue our work in this sector.

And leadership by example is still a powerful force. Our friend, HQ President Thierry Vandal, for example, has chosen a hybrid vehicle for his personal use. And when Vermont's Governor Jim Douglas assumed office in January 2003, he ordered his executive vehicles to be traded in for more fuel-efficient models. And his personal vehicle is a 4-cylinder Dodge Neon!

In our country, New Englanders' old-fashioned Yankee frugality is legendary, but Jim Douglas has proven it's more relevant than ever when it comes to saving fuel and minimizing greenhouse gas emissions.

When I am not serving as Lieutenant Governor or flying airplanes, I am also a commercial maple sugar maker. My brother Mark and I own a 280-acre sugar woods in Vermont, only about 40 miles southeast from where I stand right now. Mark is probably in the woods today. Mark and I have watched with our own eyes as the center of the maple industry moves a little north every year. Something is happening to our climate. It affects my brother and me, it affects our industry, and it affects all of agriculture.

Je me souviens -- I remember the great ice storm that struck southern Canada in 1998, which left millions in Quebec and Ontario without power. And I remember the avalanche that nearly buried an Inuit village on New Years Eve, 1997. Later, thawing of the permafrost was identified as the cause of the avalanche.

Clearly, climate change also has serious implications for public safety, as well as for world health and our environment, for our nations' energy supplies and our economies.

Reconciling the clear and compelling realities of climate change – with the inescapable need to develop new energy sources -- is a classic exercise in the Chinese concept, and of transforming "same bed, different dreams" to "same bed, same dreams".

We all have much to learn and much to share. I thank you for your attention, and for the opportunity to benefit from your views and observations.