The Canadian government has unveiled an Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) that lays out comprehensive efforts to cut 2030 carbon emissions by 40-45 percent below 2005 levels. The ERP is the first such program to be issued under the 2021 Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act.
The plan includes C$9.1 billion in new investments targeting economy-wide measures, such as a zero-emissions vehicle mandate, carbon pricing, adoption of clean fuels, and a target for reducing emissions from the oil and gas sector by 42 percent from current levels. The ERP is expected to set Canada on a path to achieve its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.
Targets for the agriculture sector include C$470 million in new funding for an existing climate action fund that seeks to expand the adoption of practices to cut fertilizer and methane emissions, including the use of cover crops, rotational grazing, and fertilizer management. The funding will extend the ag climate action program past its current end date of 2023/24.
An additional C$330 million will triple funding for the Agricultural Clean Technology Program to support the development and purchase of more energy-efficient farming equipment. The ERP also includes C$150 million to fund a “resilient agricultural landscapes” program that backs carbon sequestration and “other environmental co-benefits.”
Another C$100 million will fund “transformative science” for sustainable ag research, improved ag extension services to support new practices and technologies, and data collection to gauge the ag sector’s “environmental performance” over time.
The government intends to release a separate plan later this year to cut methane emissions. Methane accounts for 13 percent of Canada’s total 2019 greenhouse gas emissions, the government said, with more than 90 percent coming from the oil and gas, agriculture, and waste management sectors combined.
The government is also introducing a mandate that 60 percent of light-duty vehicles sold in 2030 must be zero-emissions, rising to 100 percent by 2035, Reuters reported.