The Canadian government has released a new climate plan for the country, detailing actions it plans to take to reach its 2035 emissions reduction targets, with several references to the outcome of the UN Cop 28 climate summit in 2023.
The Canadian government announced the country's 2035 target in December. It aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 45-50pc by 2035, from 2005 levels. This builds on its target to cut emissions by 40-45pc by 2030, from the same baseline, although the country is currently "on track" to reduce emissions by 34pc by 2030, from 2005 levels, the government said.
Many of the plans outlined today are in line with the first global stocktake — the key outcome from Cop 28 in December 2023. These include phasing out unabated coal-fired power, increasing renewable energy capacity, improving energy efficiency and cutting methane — a powerful GHG. The government plans to reduce methane emissions from Canada's oil and gas sector by 75pc by 2030, from 2012 levels.
It will also "explore the transfer and use of ITMOs", which are internationally transferred mitigation outcomes, or emission credits. And the country will "explore the potential" for carbon removal technologies, although the plan warned on "potential risks that must be carefully managed".
The document included detailed plans from several of Canada's provinces and territories, as well as the Assembly of First Nations. But the province of Saskatchewan — for which agriculture, oil and gas production and mining are key — pushed back on federal climate policies.
Canada's government based its plans on the "best available science" and included recommendations from the independent Net-Zero Advisory Body.
Insured losses from severe weather in Canada hit a record high of C$8.5bn ($6bn) in 2024, the government noted. And estimates suggest that "economic losses will rise to roughly 6pc of Canada's GDP by the end of the century", it added.
Canada will need investments of between C$125bn and C$140bn annually to reach its legally binding goal of net zero emissions by 2050, according to the plan. The transition "will require substantial public and private sector investment and expertise", the government said.
The plan released today is known as a nationally determined contribution (NDC). Countries and jurisdictions party to the Paris climate agreement are required to submit new plans every five years, ideally increasing in ambition. Canada committed at Cop 29 in November to an NDC aligned with Paris agreement temperature goals. The Paris accord seeks to limit the rise in global temperature to "well below" 2°C above pre-industrial levels, and preferably to 1.5°C.
