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Unceded Algonquin Anishinaabe Territories [OTTAWA], 22 April 2021 :
This morning during the opening plenary of President Biden’s Leaders Summit on Climate, Prime Minister Trudeau announced Canada’s new 40 – 45% climate target range. This target marks an increase in ambition, up from the nation’s previously stated target window of 31 – 40% as announced in December 2020’s Healthy Environment Healthy Economy Plan.
This announcement confirms Canada’s intended level of commitment, which fell under swift scrutiny earlier this week when a number (36%), released as part of the federal budget, was widely mistaken for a new greenhouse gas reduction target.
Canada’s target announcement this morning was made alongside that of several other nations in attendance at the Leader’s Summit on Climate, and comes on the heels of ambitious targets announced just days ago by other Paris signatory nations including the UK, who has brought forward a new 78% by 2035 target, and the Biden administration’ commitment to reducing emissions by half by the end of the decade.
[Quotes below]
Territoires algonquins anishinaabe non cédés [OTTAWA], 22 avril 2021 :
Ce matin, lors de la séance plénière d’ouverture du Sommet des dirigeants sur le climat du président Biden, le premier ministre Trudeau a annoncé le nouvel objectif climatique de 40 à 45 % du Canada. Cet objectif marque une augmentation de l’ambition par rapport à la fenêtre cible précédemment déclarée de 31 à 40%, comme annoncé dans le plan pour Une économie saine pour un environnement sain de décembre 2020.
Cette annonce confirme le niveau d’engagement prévu du Canada, qui a fait l’objet d’un examen rapide plus tôt cette semaine, lorsqu’un chiffre (36%), publié dans le cadre du budget fédéral, a été largement confondu avec un nouvel objectif de réduction des gaz à effet de serre.
L’annonce de l’objectif du Canada ce matin a été faite en même temps que celle de plusieurs autres nations présentes au Sommet des dirigeants sur le climat, et fait suite aux objectifs ambitieux annoncés il y a quelques jours à peine par d’autres pays signataires de Paris, dont le Royaume-Uni, qui a présenté un nouvel objectif de 78% d’ici 2035 et l’engagement de l’administration Biden à réduire de moitié les émissions d’ici la fin de la décennie.
QUOTES FROM CANADIAN CIVIL SOCIETY REPRESENTATIVES
“It’s good to see Canada driving up ambition and it’s not enough. The new target is not aligned with 1.5C – that would require a 60% emissions reduction goal. We hope to see Canada continue to ramp up ambition, both in future years and as NDC consultations occur in coming months on the road to Glasgow. Canada not only needs to improve its climate targets, but also pass strong legislation to meet those targets. Canada’s proposed Net-Zero Accountability Act, currently stalled in the House, must be strengthened as it contains more of a duty to report than a duty to achieve. As Prime Minister Trudeau noted, Canada is an energy exporting nation and that is one of the country’s main barriers to climate ambition. Canada’s new NDC should address emissions from oil and gas production, ban fossil fuel subsidies, and enshrine Just Transition legislation.” Catherine Abreu, Executive Director, Climate Action Network Canada
« C’est bien de voir le Canada augmenter son ambition, et ce n’est pas suffisant. La nouvelle cible n’est pas alignée sur le 1,5°C – qui nécessiterait un objectif de réduction de 60%. Nous espérons voir le Canada continuer à accroître son ambition, à la fois dans les années à venir et à mesure que les consultations sur sa contribution déterminée au niveau national (CDN) auront lieu dans les prochains mois, sur la voie vers Glasgow. Le Canada doit non seulement améliorer ses objectifs climatiques, mais également adopter des lois rigoureuses pour atteindre ces objectifs. La Loi canadienne sur la responsabilité en matière de carboneutralité, actuellement bloquée à la Chambre des Communes, doit être renforcée car elle contient davantage une obligation à faire rapport sur ses cibles qu’une obligations à les atteindre. Comme l’a souligné le premier ministre Trudeau, le Canada est un pays exportateur d’énergie; c’est l’un des principaux obstacles du pays à l’ambition climatique. La nouvelle CDN du Canada devrait s’attaquer aux émissions provenant de la production de pétrole et de gaz, interdire les subventions aux énergies fossiles et enchâsser une loi sur la transition juste. » Catherine Abreu, Directrice exécutive, Climate Action Network Canada
“If Trudeau’s government is serious about fighting climate change, his administration needs to stand up to big oil, starting with the cancelation of the Trans Mountain Pipeline, phasing out fossil fuel subsidies, and bringing in strong regulations to limit climate pollution,” said Sven Biggs, Canadian Oil and Gas Program Director.
“Canada was once a climate leader. We can be again, but only if this government has the courage to acknowledge that we cannot reach our climate commitments so long as we rely on fossil fuels for jobs and our energy needs. Any successful climate plan must include massive investment in supporting oil and gas workers to transition to a clean energy economy,” said Sonia Theroux, Executive Director, Leadnow.
“The problem with Justin Trudeau’s new climate pledge can be summed up in two words – fossil fuels. Neither Trudeau’s new climate plan, nor his budget, nor this new climate promise include a plan to tackle soaring emissions from tar sands, fracking and other fossil fuel expansion that makes Canada the only G7 country whose emissions have gone up since signing the Paris Agreement. Canada needs to cut our emissions at least 60% by 2030 and pass legislation like a Just Transition Act to make sure we meet our Paris commitment and leave no one behind,” said Amara Possian, Canada Campaigns Director, 350.org.
«L’ambition est certes rehaussée, mais n’est pas à la hauteur de l’urgence climatique. Pour faire la différence et se positionner comme leader, le Canada doit se doter de cibles d’au moins 60% d’ici 2030 en plus d’aider d’autres pays à se décarboner. Plus nous attendons avant de mettre en place les politiques et règlements qui nous amènent à la carboneutralité d’ici 2050, plus la pente vers l’objectif sera abrupte», affirme Émile Boisseau-Bouvier, analyste des politiques climatiques chez Équiterre.
EN: « The ambition has certainly been raised, but it doesn’t match the climate emergency. To make a difference and positions itself as a leader, Canada needs to set targets of at least 60% by 2030 and help other countries decarbonize. The longer we wait to put in place the policies and regulations that will take us to carbon neutrality by 2050, the steeper the slope towards that goal will be, » said Émile Boisseau-Bouvier, climate policy analyst at Équiterre.
« Trudeau’s proposed target is less ambitious than what climate science requires, with no commitment to phasing out fossil fuels at home or abroad. Canada is a rich country yet its target is less than Canada’s fair share of the global effort and less than what the U.S. is proposing. We should be proposing at least a 60% reduction in emissions by 2030 from 2005 levels, alongside a plan for a just transition for workers as we phase out fossil fuels. We must start with eliminating fossil fuel subsidies immediately. After more than five years in office, the Trudeau government is still incapable of proposing a target as ambitious as that of Joe Biden who took office just three months ago. Despite recent positive commitments on climate, Canada remains under the influence of the oil and gas industry, which prioritizes private profits over the wellbeing of communities and the environment. The costs of inaction will be greater than the cost of acting quickly and decisively. » Keith Stewart, Senior Energy Strategist, Greenpeace Canada.
“This is not a climate emergency target. Canada is one of the very worst emitters and needs to do more. This target will not halt the 2 degrees of warming that puts the future of the Earth in danger. A global fair share target is 60% – and it is doable. Anything less is just not acceptable – it is a recipe for ecocide. Canada’s target as announced fails future generations and must change; as must the Climate Plan. We must tackle the need to phase out fossil fuels 100% and transition to a renewable energy future.” Lyn Adamson, Co-Chair, ClimateFast
« Canada could be a climate leader, but climate leaders do not deal in empty promises or half-measures. Climate leaders do not build pipelines through stolen land or sign off on enormous fossil fuel subsidies with the same pen they use to legislate net-zero by 2050 targets. Canada is the only G7 country whose emissions have increased since the Paris Agreement. But this is not only a crisis of emissions, it is a crisis of equality. Canada’s inaction on climate is a betrayal of the people and areas most affected by this crisis. Anything less than a commitment to reduce our own emissions by 60% by 2030 is an insult to those we continue to hurt with our inaction. It is time for Canada to get serious on climate, to wind down the oil and gas industry and support workers through the transition rather than continue delaying the inevitable. » Alyssa Scanga, Youth Organizer, Climate Strike Canada
FR: “Le Canada pourrait être un champion climatique, mais les champions climatiques ne s’impliquent pas des fausses promesses ou demi-mesures. Les champions climatiques ne construisent pas des oléoducs à travers de la terre volée et n’approuvent pas de filiaux combustibles fossiles de la même main qui a légiféré des objectifs de neutralité en carbone pour 2050. Le Canada est le seul pays du G7 auquel leurs émissions ont augmenté depuis l’Accord de Paris. Ceci n’est pas seulement une crise d’émissions, c’est une crise d’égalité. L’inaction sur le climat de la part du Canada constitue une trahison aux personnes et endroits les plus affectés par la crise climatique. Rien de moins qu’un engagement de réduire nos émissions par 60% par 2030 est une insulte à ceux qui continuent à souffrir à cause de notre inaction. C’est temps que le Canada devient sérieux sur le climat, de dissoudre l’industrie pétrolière et gazière en supportant les travailleurs à travers une transition au lieu de continuer à retarder l’inévitable.” Alyssa Scanga, jeune organisatrice, Grève pour le Climat Canada
“Canada is a wealthy nation that has been among the top 10 emitters of greenhouse gases for decades. We helped create the climate crisis that threatens the future of our children. We must make a deeper commitment to fight climate change and we must have a realistic plan for keeping that commitment. We must stop investing in the oil and gas sector. We must invest deeply in energy efficiency and renewable energies; in walkable, bike-able and transit-supportive communities. These investments will reduce air pollution and improve health, while creating new jobs and fuel savings.” Kim Perrotta, Executive Director, Canadian Health Association for Sustainability and Equity (CHASE)
“Canada has increased its ambition on climate change, but reductions of 60 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 are needed to limit climate-related risks and impacts that are disproportionately affecting women and marginalized communities. We call on Prime Minister Trudeau to ensure environmental justice and gender justice are central to Canada’s climate actions. In addition to domestic actions, this will require Canada to commit at least $1.8 billion a year of public investments in climate finance in order to support women and other vulnerable people in developing countries to respond and adapt to climate change.” Anya Knechtel, Policy Specialist, Oxfam Canada
« New Brunswick risks undermining the province’s capacity to protect its citizens and compete in a decarbonized global economy if it fails to develop its own electrification and decarbonisation plan to reach near zero by 2050 and 60 per cent by 2030, a level that would see the province’s emissions fall to 5 million tonnes in 10 years. While the province’s emissions currently are in line with the new proposed federal target of 40 to 45% below 2005 by 2030, other federal requirements apply regardless of where our province’s emissions are, including the need to phase out coal from electricity generation by 2030, meet the requirements of a clean fuel standard, and a rising carbon price reaching $170/tonne by 2030.
“New Brunswick has a hard work to do, just like all provinces, and every country in the world to ensure we get on a path that avoids 1.5 degrees warming. We can’t negotiate with the atmosphere. The global carbon budget is small and rapidly declining. The province needs to comply based on the laws of physics, not politics,” Louise Comeau, Director of Climate Change and Energy, Conservation Council of New Brunswick
“Prime Minister Trudeau’s announcement today that Canada will reduce emissions by 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 represents a big step forward. Still, we absolutely must go further. Under the banner of For the Love of Creation, people of faith, national churches, and faith-based organizations have been active in the call for Canada to reduce national greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, and invest in a just transition to a fair, inclusive, green economy that creates good secure jobs, and promotes the well-being of everyone in Canada. Canadian climate ambition continues to be undermined by federal support to the oil and gas sector and a failure to embrace transformational change to ensure the liveability of the planet and the flourishing of all creation.” Karri Munn-Venn, Senior Policy Analyst, Citizens for Public Justice
“Today’s announcement of Canada’s new climate target does not deserve much celebration. While an improvement over from its previous, even more inadequate, pledge, this target does not represent what Canada could and should do to reduce emissions at a pace necessary to prevent a climate catastrophe and human rights disaster. It also places an excessive burden on developing countries. With such a weak target, Canada is effectively saying that poorer countries, who are less responsible for climate change, must also halve their emissions by 2030. It’s time the Government of Canada started treating climate change like the global emergency it is by acting in a manner proportional to the scale of the crisis and in line with its full capacity and responsibility.” Fiona Koza, Business and Human Rights Campaigner, Amnesty International Canada
« As part of the Arctic, the Yukon is already experiencing the impacts of the climate crisis. While we applaud the increase from Prime Minister Trudeau’s recent budget announcement of 36% emissions reduction to a murky number between 40 to 45%, sadly this goal does not account for the increasing emissions in Canada. Considering that Canada is one of the world’s biggest producers of greenhouse gas emissions, our minimum Fair Share would be a 60% emission reduction by 2030. We call on the Federal Government to reassess their target. » Coral Voss, Executive Director, Yukon Conservation Society
“In its latest report on the State of the Global Climate, the World Meteorological Organization stated that we need deep reductions and immediate action on the climate crisis. However, Canada’s carbon emissions reduction target is not adequate and does not include emissions from the military. The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces are the biggest emitters in the federal government. The Trudeau government continues to make massive investments in fossil-fuel powered militarism like new tanks and fighter jets. To stop global warming, we need to stop war.” Tamara Lorincz, Canadian Voice of Women for Peace
“Human bodies do not tolerate half-measures in resuscitation–we crash and die. COVID-19 does not tolerate half-measures in its management–cases skyrocket. Similarly, keeping the climate from trespassing across tipping points of no return is not a situation where half-measures constitute a healthy response to climate change. A 40-45% reduction in emissions below 2005 levels by 2030 does not represent Canada’s fair share of emissions reductions. So our job is to over-deliver. Our ambition heading forward must be to push hard, push fast, and not stop until we create the governance frameworks, through a strengthened Bill C-12, the resources, via a reallocation of fossil fuel subsidies, and the political will necessary for us to wake up in 2030 and find that we have done our part in stabilizing the Earth’s climate and providing a healthy future for our children.” – Dr Courtney Howard, Emergency Physician, Past-President, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment.
“Canada needs to sharply ramp up its climate action. Our country is now officially a climate laggard. We have the weakest 2030 carbon reduction target of G7 countries, the lowest level of financial assistance in the G7 for developing countries to address climate impacts, and second in the G20 in fossil fuel subsidies. Setting low goals means getting weak action. Today, Prime Minister Trudeau explicitly named the biggest barrier to Canada being a climate leader: the production and export of dirty oil. Now he needs to address that problem by phasing out all fossil fuel production and use.” Dale Marshall, National Climate Program Manager, Environmental Defence
« La cible proposée par Trudeau est moins ambitieuse que ce qu’exige la science du climat, sans aucun engagement à éliminer les combustibles fossiles au pays et à l’étranger. Le Canada est un pays riche, mais sa cible est inférieure à ce que doit être sa juste part de l’effort mondial et est moindre que la cible des États-Unis. Il devrait adopter une cible de réduction des émissions d’au moins 60% d’ici 2030 par rapport à 2005 en plus de planifier une sortie des combustibles fossiles et cesser immédiatement de les subventionner. Après plus de cinq ans au pouvoir, le gouvernement Trudeau n’est même pas capable de proposer une cible aussi ambitieuse que celle de Joe Biden qui est entré en fonction il y a trois mois. Malgré ses récentes annonces positives sur le climat, le Canada reste sous l’influence de l’industrie pétrolière et gazière qui priorise ses profits au dépens de la santé des communautés et de l’environnement. Les coûts de l’inaction seront plus élevés que ce qu’il en coûterait pour agir rapidement et de manière déterminée. » – Patrick Bonin, responsable de la campagne Climat-Énergie chez Greenpeace Canada
« Nous félicitons le gouvernement Trudeau qui est enfin plus ambitieux que Stephen Harper et son gouvernement climatosceptique. Cependant, la nouvelle cible du Canada est encore loin de compenser pour toutes les années où nous nous sommes enrichis en exploitant les sables bitumineux et en polluant l’atmosphère planétaire. Nous devons faire notre juste part de l’effort climatique mondial et soutenir les pays les plus touchés par la crise climatique » – Alice-Anne Simard, directrice générale de Nature Québec.
« Il y a près de cinq ans et demi à Paris, le monde s’est finalement engagé à prendre des mesures audacieuses pour faire face à la crise climatique. Mais même dans ce cas, les dirigeant.e.s savaient que les engagements n’étaient pas suffisants pour répondre à l’urgence du défi auquel nous sommes confrontés. Si nous voulons éviter les impacts les plus catastrophiques du changement climatique, nous devons travailler pour limiter la hausse de la température mondiale à 1,5 degrés Celsius. Cela signifie que nous avons besoin de réductions d’émissions importantes non pas dans 20 ou 30 ans, mais dans cette décennie. Comme pays qui a largement contribué à la crise actuelle, nous avons la responsabilité de faire notre juste part. Aujourd’hui, le premier ministre a certes rehaussé notre contribution nationale déterminée, mais son administration n’est toujours pas à la hauteur de la tâche de lutter contre la crise climatique et répondre aux exigences de la science. Nous n’avons plus de temps à perdre. Les yeux du monde, de tou.te.s les citoyen.ne.s et en particulier ceux des générations les plus jeunes, sont tournés vers notre gouvernement pour qu’ils mettent en œuvre des plans lors des prochaines négociations sur le climat à Glasgow qui répondent enfin à ce moment critique et créent un avenir durable et juste afin que nous puissions enfin inverser le cours de la crise climatique. » André-Yanne Parent, directrice générale du Projet de la réalité climatique Canada.
« Ceci est une urgence climatique. Comme professionnels de la santé, nous savons que les décisions politiques peuvent sav l’action pour le climat peut sauver des vies. Maintenant, il faut redoubler d’ambition. Pour cela, il faut bonifier le projet de loi sur la responsabilité climatique en instaurant une reddition de comptes dès 2025. Il faut arrêter de subventionner aussi généreusement le secteur des énergies fossiles et plutôt soutenir les travailleurs dans une transition juste vers une économie plus propre. » – Dre Claudel Pétrin-Desrosiers, présidente de l’Association québécoise des médecins pour l’environnement
“The Road to Net Zero needs all hands on deck. We have a very good made-in Canada Just Transition model to work from: the 2019 National Task Force on Just Transition for Canadians. Coal Power Workers and Communities set out strong principles and recommendations to guide Just Transition. Let’s implement them! Getting it right is about good sustainable jobs and strong Communities. Just Transition is the bridge that takes us there.” Joie Warnock, Assistant to the President, Unifor.
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