The federal government’s new plan for climate change relies heavily on cuts in oil and gas emissions, requiring emissions cuts of 81 megatons by 2030 to ensure the country achieves overall greenhouse gas emission targets. The sector, which is critical to the economies of Alberta and Canada, will need to cut emissions by 42% over the next eight years from 2019 levels, the government said on Tuesday. The plan was tabled in the House of Commons by Environment Minister Steven Gilbo. It is committing $ 9.1 billion in new spending to ensure Canada cuts its total emissions by 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. The plan is largely based on increasing the speed and ambition of existing climate change programs. For example, strengthening orders for sales of zero-emission vehicles, further reducing the carbon footprint of the clean fuel model, and expanding budgets for remodeling homes and buildings. Information documents released by the Department of the Environment indicate more than $ 7.8 billion in new spending. Officials say the total of $ 9.1 billion will be written into next week’s federal budget. Among the items not yet costed is a promising tax deduction for companies developing carbon capture, use and storage. The tax credit was promised for the first time in the 2021 budget. The emission reduction plan is the first to be tabled since the government enacted new climate legislation requiring regular updates and intermediate emission targets to eventually reach net zero emissions by the middle of the century. It shows the government targeting the bottom line of the 40-45 percent cut first announced by Prime Minister Justin Trinto a year ago. Speaking to reporters at the Globe Forum Sustainability Conference in Vancouver, Mr Trinto said the plan was “ambitious” and “necessary but feasible”. He acknowledged that the roadmap was aimed at the lowest point of his 2030 target, but described it as a “good start”. “The biggest contributor is, of course, the oil and gas sector in this country, so we have set a clear path for where the sector should go,” Trinto said. “This will guide us as we develop our plan to reduce and reduce emissions from the oil and gas sector.” In Canada, the oil and gas sector is the largest emitter of pollution that accelerates global warming, contributing to greater and more frequent natural disasters such as floods and fires, and adversely affecting human health and livelihoods. However, the transport sector, which is ranked is almost second in the oil and gas sector, under much less pressure to rapidly reduce its share of greenhouse gas emissions. In a keynote address at the forum, Mr Trinto described the cuts in oil and gas emissions as a “clear, sensible contribution”. “With record profits, this is the time for the oil and gas sector to invest in a sustainable future that is good for business, good for communities and good for our future,” he said. “The big oil lobbyists spent their time on the field. “Now it’s up to the workers and engineers to come up with solutions.” The emissions ceiling promised by the Liberals in the last election has not yet been finalized, but will be updated by the overall cuts the government expects from the oil and gas sector. Officials told reporters that details of the ceiling would be completed by the end of the year, after consulting with industry and other stakeholders. Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero Alliance, which is made up of six companies that together account for about 95 percent of Canada’s crude oil production, said it recognized the industry’s essential role in helping the country meet its climate targets. . The alliance announced last year a plan to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, with the interim goal of reducing sand-oil emissions by 22 megatons by the end of this decade. “We are already working closely with the government to achieve a net zero and will look closely at the emission reduction plan to see how it aligns with our plans,” interim alliance director Kendall Dilling said in a statement Tuesday afternoon. . Mr Dealing said the alliance was “pleased” that the new climate plan reaffirmed the government’s commitment to develop an investment tax rebate that would encourage the development of carbon capture technologies. Addressing reporters, Mr Trinto and Mr Gilbo said the differences between the sectors were based on the speed with which each industry could implement the required changes. The biggest new expense of the document is the more than doubling of the federal government’s low carbon economy fund. Another $ 2.2 billion will be allocated to the $ 2 billion fund, which is widely available in counties and regions, businesses, municipalities, nonprofits, universities, hospitals and indigenous groups to fund emission reduction programs. The government will also provide another $ 1.7 billion in its zero-emission vehicle incentive program. At the same time it increases the speed with which it will force the economy to move away from internal combustion engines. Within four years, 20 percent of light vehicle sales should be zero-emission cars, which will rise to 60 percent in 2030 and 100 percent in 2035. The government said it also wants to see zero-emission vehicles. 35 percent increase in sales of medium and heavy vehicles by 2030. The building sector is Canada’s third largest share of emissions, and the new plan aims to reduce them by 37 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. More than 85 percent of emissions in the sector come from space heating and water. The plan includes an additional $ 458.5 million for the existing Canada Greener Homes Loan program, which helps cover costs for energy-saving improvements such as electric heat pumps, new windows and doors, solar panels and better attic insulation. The program has been popular since its inception, attracting more than 32,000 applications from Canadian homeowners within three days of its launch last May. The new federal spending raises the projected cost of the program to nearly $ 3.1 billion over seven years. It is intended to provide hundreds of thousands of Canadians with up to $ 5,000 each for renovations and up to $ 600 each to pay for energy assessments required before and after the upgrade. In 2019, soils under the influence of human activity released 9.9 megatons of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Forestry, wetlands and settlements emitted 9.3, 2.6 and 2.2 megatons respectively, while agricultural land removed 4.2 megatons, according to the plan. Prior to the launch of the plan on Tuesday, nearly 100 scientists from around the world wrote a letter to the Prime Minister urging the federal government to prioritize protecting Canada’s biodiversity forests as part of the plan’s plan for natural climate solutions. Natural climate solutions refer to a series of tactics that include improving forest management, protecting meadows, planting trees alongside cash crops, avoiding peat disturbance and converting crop residues to biocarbon, which is a extremely stable form of carbon that can be added to the soil for improvement. its quality. The plan includes $ 780 million for the existing Nature Smart Climate Solutions Fund, which aims to use natural habitats, such as forests, to reduce emissions. The plan also includes a new $ 470 million investment to support sustainable farming practices such as cover crops, rotational grazing and improved manure management. In the 271-page plan to reduce emissions, the government says that “natural climate solutions play a key role in mitigation and also provide significant co-benefits.” Indigenous peoples, the plan says, “are well placed to support natural climate solutions because of their role as managers of their traditional soils.” Environmental groups reacted immediately to the publication of the plan with mixed reviews, noting that the document is the most comprehensive national climate roadmap to date, also stressing that it is trying to reach only the lower end of its 40 to 45 percent target. set by the Liberals. emissions-reductions until 2030. “The 2030 Emission Reduction Plan offers more detail and transparency than any Canadian climate plan to date, but it fails to address the urgency of the moment,” said Caroline Brouillette, National Policy Officer for Climate Action Network Canada. “The measures in this plan only add up to 40 percent of the emission cuts, the bottom end of the range to which the government has committed.” The Environmental Defense said in a statement that the plan “allows the oil and gas sector” to do its share to help reduce emissions. “Avoiding catastrophic climate change requires cutting off oil and gas production over the next decade,” said Keith Brooks. “While the plan sets a target level for emissions from the industry – first – the target is much weaker than Canada’s climate commitments as a whole.” For subscribers: Receive exclusive political news and analysis by subscribing to Political information.
