New Pembina Report ‘All Together Now’ Assesses State of Climate Action by Governments Across Canada
July 10, 2024
British Columbia and Quebec leading the pack; Alberta and Saskatchewan falling further behind
Canada is on track to significantly reduce its emissions this decade, thanks to governments that are implementing policies to reduce emissions and shifting towards low-carbon energy generation and use, a new report by the Pembina Institute and Simon Fraser University has found.
All Together Now: A provincial scorecard on shared responsibility to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Canada assesses the performance of Canada’s federal and provincial governments against a set of 23 energy and climate policy indicators, including:
- The existence of comprehensive climate and energy transition plans, bolstered by credible emissions reduction targets.
- Targeted measures for high-emitting sectors, such as:
- Zero-emission vehicle sales regulations and purchase incentives.
- Reforms to building codes to create industry standards around zero-carbon homes and buildings.
- Policies to decarbonize electricity grids, such as those that encourage renewables development.
- Oil and gas emissions reduction policies, especially methane regulations, where applicable.
- Other initiatives aimed at ensuring the economic benefits of the clean energy transition are fairly and equitably shared across communities, such as measures to support and reskill workers.
- Evidence of reconciliation imperatives being built into the climate planning process, such as by governments adopting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
- Adaptation planning to mitigate the impacts of climate change on vulnerable demographics and economic sectors.
- Mechanisms to hold governments accountable to these climate plans and policies (such as independent monitoring and reporting processes).
Overall, the report finds a wide variation of performance across Canada’s governments. There is evidence of strong leadership from the governments of British Columbia and Quebec, as well as the federal government. Several other provinces have climate plans and policies that are working in some areas, but need to be updated to match the pace and scale of the energy transition now underway globally.
Conversely, there was very little evidence of adequate work by the governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan to plan to reduce emissions and participate in the emerging clean economy, with these governments also actively opposing some federal climate measures.
