That was the message Liberal Leader Stephane Dion gave to a crowd of about 1,400 people who packed the St. Vlodymyr Cultural Centre Wednesday night to hear him speak.

Against the backdrop of a massive Canadian flag and over the applause of the largely friendly crowd, Dion preached the merits of his plan for the environment, which he called the Green Shift, in an effort to counter Conservative attack ads that have been hammering the plan ever since its release.

"It's not complicated. Don't believe the Conservatives," said Dion. "You tax less what you want more of -- your income, your savings, your investments -- and you shift these taxes towards pollution, especially greenhouse gases."

The plan would see large-scale polluters slapped with a carbon tax that would rise over four years from $10 per tonne in year one to $40 per tonne by year four.

Dion promised this wouldn't include an increase in taxes on gas at the pumps. It was also pointed out that this isn't a revenue tax, like the GST, and as such Canadians won't see it at the cash register.

In phase two of the plan, the money raised from taxing polluters would be used to fund a tax cut for all Canadians.

"Is this a bold plan? Absolutely," said Halton MP Garth Turner. "Is it controversial? You bet. Can it happen? Can it work? We're convinced it is the right thing to do."

As grand as the plan sounds, the Liberals noted there will be additional costs involved after the plan is in place for four years.

The cost of filling a barbecue propane tank is expected to rise less than a dollar, while heating a home with heating oil would cost $200 more a year and the heating a home with natural gas would cost $240 more a year.

That said, the party plans to drop income tax levels with the lowest rate falling from 15 per cent to 13.5 per cent (affecting people making $37,885 or less), the second rate falling from 22 per cent to 21 per cent (affecting people making between $38,885 and $75,769) and the third rate dropping from 26 per cent to 25 per cent (affecting people making between $75,769 and $123,184).

Beyond the cost savings, however, Dion emphasized another reason why those present should listen to what he had to say.

"We are here tonight because we care about our children and grandchildren," said Dion to thunderous applause.

"We don't want to be the first generation of Canadians who would pass onto the next generation a quality of life that will go down instead of up."

Dion said the challenges that could prevent Canadians from passing on a better quality of life to their children are very real and include both climate change and the rising cost of fossil fuels.

"They are linked together," he said. "The main way by which we are putting so much greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere is through the burning of fossil fuels. This contributes to the emissions that are keeping the heat of the sun longer than it should and creating global warming."

While Dion believes action needs to be taken to protect the environment, he also noted the inefficient use of fossil fuels is hurting the economy. He singled out Ontario and how jobs are being lost in the manufacturing sector because the rising cost of energy.

"It is affecting our industrial sector, our agriculture, our forestry, our ability to be competitive in the world," he said.

"Many countries have understood that and have undertaken reforms, become less dependent on fossil fuels and developed new resources of energy and become more energy efficient."

With his presentation complete Dion took questions from the audience.

One woman, who operates a business requiring her to drive constantly, asked Dion why she should be punished with a carbon tax.

"We are all polluters, all of us and some of us are bigger polluters than others," said Dion.

Dion said his plan would give polluters four years to adapt before they feel the full weight of the carbon tax. He also reiterated that his plan wouldn't increase taxes on gasoline.

To find out more about Dion's plan visit www.thegreenshift.ca.