Climate Plan Takes B.C 73 per cent Towards 2020 Target

June 26, 2008

Victoria – British Columbia’s Climate Action Plan outlines comprehensive strategies and initiatives that will take B.C. approximately 73 per cent towards meeting the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 33 per cent by 2020, Premier Gordon Campbell said today.

“The plan outlines a roadmap to a new, prosperous, green economy for British Columbia, with a wide range of specific actions which will make the province more efficient, competitive and productive while reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” said Premier Campbell. “In addition to laying out actions announced since 2007, the plan outlines how the province’s Climate Action Team will recommend strategies to bridge the remaining gap to reach the province’s emissions reduction target by 2020.”
 
The plan describes how the Province will make significant progress toward meeting emission reduction goals. It provides information on the many ways British Columbians can reduce energy consumption and save money while reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.

These incentives are for both individuals and families to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through programs such as the new LiveSmart BC home retrofit incentives, which are designed to reward smart choices that save energy, water, fuel, time and money. These incentives can be worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. It also outlines how British Columbia’s business sector can capitalize on an emerging and rapidly growing global green economy.
 
The plan, which contains GHG emissions modeling by M.K. Jaccard and Associates Inc., uses conservative estimates to outline how emissions will be reduced in each of the province’s major sectors. For example, the modeling is based on the price of oil averaging $US85 a barrel through 2020, a forecast that is significantly below the current price of oil. It is also based on the assumption that the revenue-neutral carbon tax does not increase beyond 2012, and assumes the use of existing and available technologies.

“This Climate Action Plan summarizes the innovative steps we are taking for getting from where we are today to our low-carbon future in 2020 and beyond,” said Environment Minister Barry Penner. “We are making good progress and this plan shows how we can succeed in meeting the significant challenges that remain.”

The plan addresses climate action in four key areas:

  • Entrenching greenhouse gas reduction targets in law.
  • Taking targeted action in all sectors of the B.C. economy.
  • Taking steps to help British Columbians adapt to the realities of climate change.
  • Educating and engaging British Columbians on climate action.

 

The plan’s wide range of initiatives include $1.8 billion in innovative tax cuts funded by the revenue-neutral carbon tax, a new carbon emission cap and trade system and investments in emerging green technologies. The plan also includes the expansion of Citizens’ Conservation Councils to help build a network of grassroots climate actions in communities across the province. It describes provincewide actions that have been taken to date, along with strategies specific to seven sectors:

  • Transportation – Improved efficiency of the vehicles we drive, an expanded “Scrap-It” program to provide up to $2,250 in cash incentives to get older, polluting cars off the road; increased use of hybrid vehicles in government; a $2,000 provincial sales tax exemption for hybrid and fuel-efficient vehicles; cleaner buses and trucks; reduced carbon in fuels; and expanded public transit and cycling.
  • Buildings – A new Green Building Code, a new Energy Efficient Buildings Strategy, encouragement for compact, green communities, solar roofs on 100,000 B.C. buildings, and requirements for all new government buildings to meet LEED Gold or equivalent standards.
  • Waste – Keeping organic waste out of landfills, turning waste into energy while reducing greenhouse gases, cleaning up landfills, increased composting, and making manufacturers more responsible for packaging and other waste created by their products.
  • Agriculture – Working with the agriculture industry on strategies that may include digesters to capture methane from manure, improved fertilizer application, community biogas digestion/electricity generation projects, research on biomass fuels, green city farms and encouraging local purchase of agricultural products.
  • Industry – A carbon emissions cap and trade system to provide an economic incentive for large emitters to reduce their emissions, in many cases by implementing made-in-B.C. technological solutions.
  • Energy – BC Hydro’s PowerSmart incentives, a First Nations and Remote Community Clean Energy Program, alternative energy development, support for local government energy efficiency, investments in solar energy, smart electricity meters, and the BC Bioenergy Strategy.
  • Forestry – Strategies in forest management such as Forests for Tomorrow, Trees for Tomorrow, accelerated forest growth and net-zero deforestation, and new opportunities such as bio-mass energy and cellulosic ethanol production.

“By taking decisive action on climate change we are positioning British Columbia to be a green economic power house in North America’s burgeoning high-technology and clean-energy sectors, which are expected to benefit from playing a key role in implementing low-carbon solutions worldwide,” said Premier Campbell. “All of us must be part of the climate change solution. The Climate Action Plan provides a starting point for everyone – individuals, business and government – to help leave a better place for our children and grandchildren.”
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