Federal government to impose stringent standards on coal-fired generation
On June 23, 2010, the federal Minister of the Environment, the Honourable Jim Prentice, announced that in keeping with its commitments under the Copenhagen Accord to reduce GHG emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020, the federal government will soon introduce legislation to regulate GHG emission in the electricity sector by applying performance standards to coal-fired electricity generation units.
Prentice announced that draft regulations to reduce GHGs from the electricity sector are expected to be published in Canada Gazette early in 2011 and final regulations will be published later that year. The proposed regulations will apply a stringent performance standard to new coal-fired electricity generation units and those coal-fired units that have reached the end of their economic life.
Said Prentice, "Our regulation will be very clear — when each coal-burning unit reaches the end of its economic life, it will have to meet the new standards or close down," he said. "No trading, no offsets, no credits."
The proposed regulation may represent a shift in government policy, as the government has previously stated that it would coordinate emission reduction plans with U.S. legislation.
Prentice also announced that the Government of Canada will invest $400 million in international climate change initiatives for the poorest and most vulnerable countries. This investment represents the 2010 portion of Canada's share of the fast-start financing promised by developed countries under the Copenhagen Accord.
