Tag: Climate Action Charter

British Columbia releases long-awaited Climate Leadership Plan

On August 19, 2016, the BC government released its long-awaited Climate Leadership Plan, which updates the province’s earlier Climate Action Plan (2008). The plan follows the release of the government-appointed Climate Leadership Team’s (CLT) recommendations in November 2015 and sets out 21 actions to reduce emissions across five areas: (1) natural gas, (2) transportation, (3) forestry and agriculture, (4) communities and built environment, and (5) public sector.

The CLT had made 32 recommendations including, among others, the establishment of a mid-term 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target and a reduction in the provincial sales tax from 7% to 6%, which would be offset by an increase in the carbon tax by $10 per year commencing in July 2018.  While the Climate Leadership Plan has been informed by some of the recommendations made by CLT and feedback received from the public and stakeholders, the plan focuses on actions that will enable BC to achieve its legislated target of reducing emissions 80% below 2007 levels by 2050. In so doing, the Climate Leadership Plan bypasses BC’s 2020 target of achieving a reduction in GHG emissions of 33% below 2007 levels. The BC government has declined to set a mid-term target and will keep the province’s revenue neutral carbon tax at $30 per tonne until the federal government’s approach to carbon pricing is revealed.

The key actions in the Climate Leadership Plan include the following:

Communities & Built Environment

  • Working together with local governments to refresh the Climate Action Charter, with a particular focus on: (i) growth near major transit corridors for large urban communities; (ii) increasing the use of decision support tools that provide the information needed to create more resilient green infrastructure; and (iii) strengthening the ability of communities to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
  • Amending regulations to promote more energy efficient buildings.
  • Creating a waste-to-resource strategy to reduce waste sent to landfill and establishing a food waste prevention target of 30% and increasing organics diverted from landfills to 90%.

Public Sector

  • Promoting the use of low carbon and renewable materials in public sector buildings.
  • Mandating the creation of 10-year emission reduction and adaptation plans for provincial public sector operations.

Transportation

  • Increasing the requirements for BC’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard to 15% by 2030 (it currently requires a reduction in the carbon intensity of transportation fuels by 10% by 2020 (relative to 2010)).
  • Amending regulations to encourage emission reductions in transportation by allowing utilities to double the total pool of incentives available to convert commercial fleets to natural gas, when the new incentives go towards vehicles using 100% natural gas.
  • Expanding support for zero emission vehicle charging stations in buildings through the Clean Energy Vehicle program.

Forestry & Agriculture

  • Rehabilitating under-productive forests, recovering more wood fibre, and avoiding emissions from burning slash; these actions will be taken through the new Forest Carbon Initiative, which will seek to increase the rate of replanting and fiber recovery by 20,000 hectares per year.

Industry & Utilities

  • Developing new energy efficiency standards for gas-fired boilers.
  • Facilitating projects that will help fuel marine vessels and commercial vehicles with natural gas.

Natural Gas

  • Developing a strategy to reduce upstream methane emissions, including targets for reducing fugitive and vented emissions from extraction and processing infrastructure (built before January 1, 2015) by 45% by 2025.
  • Investing in infrastructure to develop upstream electrification of several projects, including the Peace Region Electricity Supply Project, North Montney Power Supply Project and others.

The BC government has said that the Climate Leadership Plan is a living document that will be further updated over the coming year. The plan will likely be updated to reflect federal climate change policy developments once the working groups that were established at the First Ministers’ meeting in March 2016 report back in October 2016 (working groups were established to study (a) clean technology, innovation and jobs, (b) carbon pricing mechanisms, (c) mitigation opportunities, and (d) adaptation and climate resilience).

BC Climate Leadership Team Issues 32 Recommendations to BC Government

In May 2015, BC Premier Christy Clark appointed a Climate Leadership Team (consisting of leaders from B.C. businesses, communities, First Nations, academia and the environmental sector) to provide advice and recommendations to government for its new Climate Leadership Plan.
Following stakeholder consultations, the Climate Leadership Team prepared a report that was released by the BC government on November 27, 2015, in advance of the COP 21 meeting in Paris. The team’s report consists of 32 recommendations addressing a number of areas including GHG reduction targets, carbon tax design, transportation, buildings, communities, offsets, and First Nations.

Some of the key recommendations from the Climate Leadership Team include:

  • setting a legislated target for 2030 of 40% GHG reduction from 2007 levels, and reaffirming B.C.’s commitment to the 2050 target of an 80% GHG reduction from 2007 levels;
  • establishing the following sector-specific GHG reduction goals (below 2015) for 2030: (a) 30 per cent for the transportation sector totalling 6.3 MT of CO2; (b) 30 per cent for the industrial sector totalling 8.4 MT of CO2; and (c) 50 per cent for the built environment totalling 3.4 MT of CO2;
  • lowering the provincial sales tax (PST) from 7 per cent to 6 per cent, supported by incremental carbon tax;
  • increasing the carbon tax by $10 per year commencing in July 2018 while (a) maintaining the current tax reductions achieved through the existing carbon tax that are broad based, provide support to vulnerable populations, or promote GHG reductions; (b) adjust the current low income and rural and northern tax credits; and (c) establish targeted and transparent mechanisms for emission-intensive, trade-exposed sectors until such time that carbon pricing and regulatory policy equivalency with other jurisdictions is achieved;
  • expanding the coverage of the current carbon tax to apply to all GHG emission sources in BC after five years, starting with measurable GHG emissions covered by the current reporting regulation;
  • using incremental revenues generated from the increase in the carbon tax to (a) eliminate PST on all electricity rates; (b) establish mechanisms to facilitate investments in technology and innovation that reduce GHG emissions; and (c) establish mechanisms to provide local governments with funding for projects that will result in demonstrable GHG emission reductions;
  • amending the Clean Energy Act to increase the target for clean energy on the integrated grid from 93 per cent to 100 per cent by 2025;
  • establishing a strategy and funding to phase out diesel generation in remote communities and replace it with low-GHG electricity service by 2025;
  • developing a low-carbon transportation strategy to enable the transportation sector to emit 30 per cent fewer GHG emissions by 2030 which include Zero Emission Vehicle targets, increases to the scope and coverage of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, and the establishment of a revenue neutral PST for all vehicles based on grams of Co2 per kilometre;
  • undertaking a review and update of the Climate Action Charter to align provincial and community goals;
  • creating a waste-to-resource strategy that reduces GHG emissions associated with food waste, organic waste, and landfills;
  • working with First Nation communities to transition communities that are currently dependent on diesel generation to low-GHG electricity service; and
  • undertaking a review of the current offset policy in BC.

The BC government is now reviewing the Climate Leadership Team’s recommendations. It will commence the public consultation process in January 2016, with a view to releasing a final Climate Leadership Plan in March 2016.