Canada

The People’s Climate Plan Teach-in, held in Toronto June 4, took great strides forward in presenting a forceful alternative to the inadequate and deceptive climate action proposals of Canada’s federal government.

June 3, 2016 - On the second floor of Royal Bank of Canada’s headquarters in Toronto’s financial district, traders Ryan Holm and Rostik Radik buy and sell allowances in a carbon market that will serve as a crucial element in Ontario’s ambitious effort to reduce greenhouse gases.

In December 2015, Canada joined 176 other countries to sign the Paris Agreement. By doing so, Canada has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 (a minimum reduction that must be revisited according to the terms of the agreement). Environment Canada’s latest projections show that under existing energy and climate policies, emissions will be 55 per cent above the Paris Agreement target in 2030, which means that Canada has some serious work to do to fulfill its commitment.

The economic case is a bust and emissions will shatter limits: expert.

The push for Canada to be 'liquidating its remaining nonrenewable resources as fast as possible to maintain the economy has no credibility,' concludes report author David Hughes.

May 27, 2016 - The New Brunswick government has extended for an indefinite period its ban on hydraulic fracturing, saying the jury is still out on the risks to public health and environment from the controversial practice.

A cloud of noxious particles brewing in the air above the Alberta oil sands is one of the most prolific sources of air pollution in North America, often exceeding the total emissions from Canada’s largest city, federal scientists have discovered.

The finding marks the first time researchers have quantified the role of oil sands operations in generating secondary organic aerosols, a poorly understood class of pollutants that have been linked to a range of adverse health effects.

Canadian aboriginal groups and their allies said on Friday they have the power to block proposed oil pipelines on land where they have proven title, dismissing comments by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who said no community has a veto.

Trudeau told Reuters on Thursday that unanimous consent is not needed for the government to approve pipeline projects to bring Canadian oil to market, even as he pledged consultation with aboriginals and environmentalists who oppose projects.

For all the political noise coming from municipalities and provinces in opposition to various pipeline projects, in reality they may lack any legal leverage to stop the projects or insist on conditions.

Globally, it appears we’ve just been through a record hot April. It followed a record hot March. Which followed a record hot February, after a record hot January, and so on for the last year.

Not only did these months shatter temperature records – they broke them by the biggest margin ever.