Canada commits to increased GHG cuts
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau told US president Joe Biden’s Leaders' Summit on Climate April 22 that Canada would reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40-45% within the next decade, exceeding its Paris Agreement commitment of a 30% reduction from 2005 levels.
“Canada understands that if you don’t have a plan to tackle climate change, then you don’t have a plan to create jobs and economic growth,” Trudeau said. “Canada is a committed partner in the global fight against climate change, and together we will build a cleaner and more prosperous future for all.”
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Through measures already in place, including a planned increase in the federal carbon tax to C$170 (US$136)/mt by 2030, Canada has “blown through” its original Paris commitment, he said, and could now reach a 36% reduction by 2030.
But Trudeau’s more aggressive target falls short of the 60% reduction many environmental groups say is needed to limit global warming to 1.5 °C by 2050.
Still, Canadian climate policy organisation Clean Prosperity welcomed the higher reduction target, saying it represented a “positive step forward” in the fight against climate change.
“While Canada’s peers like the US, the UK, and the EU have announced even more ambitious targets, the new Canadian commitment should be welcomed as a major improvement over the federal government’s previous 30% reduction target,” Clean Prosperity executive director Michael Bernstein said. “It’s important to set goals like the 2030 target, but what matters even more are policies that reduce our emissions and enable us to achieve our goals.”
Canadian politicians are now debating new federal measures that, if passed, would legislate rolling five-year targets for cutting emissions, starting in 2030 and ending in 2050.