Emissions in Canada fell last year, though still far off Paris targets

OTTAWA — For the first time since the pandemic, Canada had a year-over-year decline in its greenhouse gas emissions — though it is still a long way off its 2030 target.

A preliminary emissions report Thursday from the federal government shows greenhouse gases emitted in 2023 fell by six million tonnes compared to 2022, the equivalent to what about 1.4 million passenger vehicles emit over the course of a year.

Under the Paris climate agreement, Canada committed to reducing its emissions by 2030 to 40 to 45 per cent less than what they were in 2005.

The latest figures show as of 2023 they were down 8.5 per cent.

In an unusual move, the government released an early summary of its national inventory report today amid growing criticism on its climate record.

The report is a snapshot of a country’s annual greenhouse gas emissions which Canada normally publishes in April when it has to submit it to the United Nations.

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said the report confirms the government’s plan is working.

“Thanks to the work of Canadians from every region of this country, we are succeeding in cutting pollution to the lowest level in over 27 years (excluding pandemic years), while our economy is growing,” Guilbeault said in a news release.

“We are doing that by supporting the industries that are creating jobs for Canadians, alongside measures that help Canadians with cost-savings in their daily lives.”

The report shows emissions in 2023 fell to 694 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent — the same levels as they were in 2021 when much of the country was still under COVID-19 restrictions.

The report revised previous year’s numbers, a normal process that happens as science finds more accurate ways to measure pollution. With those revisions, Canada’s new 2030 target is to have emissions be no more than 455 million tonnes to reach its 2030 target.

“The carbon pricing has been working to slightly cut into emissions,” Green party Leader Elizabeth May told The Canadian Press.

“So this is the first time we can actually track that a policy instrument is actually reducing emissions. But it’s so far off what’s required that, while encouraging, it’s far short of what’s necessary.”

The report showed a small increase in emissions in 2023 from transportation sources, offset by decreases in the oil and gas sector, agriculture and emissions from buildings.

A report last month from federal Environment Commissioner Jerry DeMarco said Canada is still not on track to meet its commitments under the Paris climate agreement.

The report did not factor Canada’s draft regulations on oil and gas, which were published two days before DeMarco’s report came out, though those regulations only come into force in 2026 after the next federal election.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2024

Nick Murray, The Canadian Press