Environment Minister John Baird says he's "more optimistic now" that U.S. President George Bush has called on the international community -- including the United States -- to come together to set goals to reduce gas house emissions.
Bush also emphasized using technological improvements in the industry and energy sectors to reduce pollutants rather than setting mandatory emissions targets.
Baird told CTV's Mike Duffy Live that having the Americans on-board is a key step to fighting global warming.
"Technology is definitely a big part of the solution. Hydrogen, hybrid cars, carbon caption storage," Baird said. "We are working hard on that in Canada and working hard on this international dialogue to try to get a new plan for post 2012."
On Friday, Bush called for a new fund to reduce global warming, which he now admits is a real phenomenon with human factors. But Bush refused to sign onto plans for UN-mandated emissions cuts, something Europeans are pushing for.
They largely dismissed Bush's call to develop a fund to help developing countries invest in clean air projects as a minor step towards resolving a much bigger issue.
"This here was a great step for the Americans and a small step for mankind,'' German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said. "In substance, we are still far apart.''
Bush's comments were made at a meeting that brought representatives from 15 countries, including Canada, to Washington to discuss climate issues.
Baird said Canada can be a go-between with the United States, Europe, and developing countries when it comes to dealing with climate change issues. The U.S., India, and China, are against mandatory emmissions cuts, while Europe is calling for deep reductions in the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the air.
"What we are doing is having a discussion and a dialogue on what it is going to take to get an effective agreement," Baird told Mike Duffy Live.
"Canada is very much on the same page as European countries and we are working to try to be a bridge to countries like the United States, like China, like India."
The Tories say they support mandatory cuts, but also wants to see intensity targets. These would set targets for emissions to decline by a certain percentage in relation to a unit, such as a barrel of oil.
The NDP called the concept of intensity targets nothing more than "rubbish."
