Close X
Thursday, November 28, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canada's 2030 climate goal tough to achieve: PBO

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 Jun, 2021 01:27 PM
  • Canada's 2030 climate goal tough to achieve: PBO

A new report released from Canada's parliamentary budget officer Wednesday says the speed at which change needs to happen for how people drive and heat buildings will make it tough for the Liberal government to achieve its latest climate goal.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised in April that Canada would slash greenhouse gas emissions by 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.

Canada is currently signed on to an international agreement to slash this heat-trapping pollution by 30 per cent for that year, but joined other nations in ratcheting up its target to boost global efforts to fight climate change.

The Liberal government says existing measures like its carbon pricing regime put Canada on track to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 36 per cent by 2030 — and has yet to detail how it will close the remaining gap.

The parliamentary budget officer studied the government's higher targets and says while the technology exists to reduce these emissions, "the scale and speed of the changes will make it challenging to achieve."

The report gives examples in sectors such as transportation as well as in oil and gas.

It estimates that given how Canada's current stock of cars and light truck sits at around 23 million, to help further reduce emissions to meet the revised target, around half of new vehicle sales in Canada starting next year would have to be for ones powered by zero-emission technology.

"Only a prohibitively high subsidy could achieve that objective," the PBO report reads.

It added that heating buildings using less carbon-intensive methods and further reducing emissions in the oilsands would require new technologies to be deployed quickly, with the right infrastructure having to be in place.

As an example, the report mentions putting more electric vehicles on the roads means they have to be supported by the proper electrical generation capacity to provide the necessary power.

The report also analyzed how the Liberals' rising carbon price will potentially affect the economy.

Last December, the government confirmed its carbon price would steadily rise from $50 per tonne in 2022 to reach $170 per tonne in 2030.

The move was panned by many in Western Canada's oil and gas industries as well as the Opposition Conservatives that say the fuel costs unfairly burdens Canadians who have no choice but to drive, and the policy undermines the country's competitiveness given not every country uses carbon pricing.

The PBO report says increasing the carbon price to $170 per tonne by 2030, combined with other climate polices, will negatively impact real GDP by 1.4 per cent.

It presents the figure with two caveats: That is doesn't know whether the deployment of new technologies will lead to gains in terms of productivity, and can't say what climate change itself will cost Canada.

The report also says the hits to real labour incomes will be felt mostly in the fields of oil and gas and transportation, with workers who have lower education levels feeling losses more so than those with higher education.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Freeze promotions for top brass: Committee

Freeze promotions for top brass: Committee
The request is one of several from the House of Commons committee on the status of women, which recently finished a months-long study of military sexual misconduct sparked by allegations against several senior commanders.

Freeze promotions for top brass: Committee

Green leader asks party execs, PM for 'space'

Green leader asks party execs, PM for 'space'
Green Leader Annamie Paul is asking party brass and the prime minister to give her "the space to unify" the party ahead of a general meeting that could serve as a referendum on her leadership.

Green leader asks party execs, PM for 'space'

BC unveils back to school plan for fall, says students K-12 will not be in cohorts

BC unveils back to school plan for fall, says students K-12 will not be in cohorts
Whiteside - “We can plan for a much more typical school year in the fall.” $18 million is going to learning impacts. No guidance on mask wearing in schools for September. Daily health checks will continue.

BC unveils back to school plan for fall, says students K-12 will not be in cohorts

How B.C. could manage COVID-19 in the future

How B.C. could manage COVID-19 in the future
Dr. Réka Gustafson said it's hard to speculate on the longevity of COVID-19 but public health officials are preparing for a shift to more typical communicable disease management based on the characteristics and behaviour of the virus.

How B.C. could manage COVID-19 in the future

Possible military shell found in North Vancouver

Possible military shell found in North Vancouver
RCMP Sgt. Peter DeVries says they were called Wednesday when the purchaser realized they may be the new owner of a "historical ordnance."

Possible military shell found in North Vancouver

113 COVID19 cases for Wednesday

113 COVID19 cases for Wednesday
76.3% of all adults in B.C. and 74.6% of those 12 and older have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. In total, 4,165,142 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in B.C., 710,847 of which are second doses.

113 COVID19 cases for Wednesday