Canada's federal government needs to provide more funding, plan for a just transition and be more transparent about the challenges ahead if the country is going to have a chance of hitting net-zero emissions by 2050, a new report says
A new report, published by the net-zero council of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, warns that Canada risks falling behind the United States if it doesn’t boost incentives to develop a low-carbon economy. | Sean Gallup/Getty ImagesOTTAWA — The federal government needs to provide more funding, plan for a just transition and be more transparent about the challenges ahead if the country is going to have a chance of hitting net-zero emissions by 2050, a new report says.
The council wrote the report in response to the Liberals’ emissions reduction plan, released last spring. The plan is an important first step, the council concludes, but the federal government is still far from setting Canada on track to hit its net-zero target.Last year, the federal government passed an accountability law that requires five-year emissions targets to get Canada to net-zero by 2050. It also created an advisory body to help chart the path forward.
The council says the government should not only increase federal funding for net-zero initiatives, but should also help to “de-risk” private sector investment through loan guarantees and tax incentives, for example.includes “major incentives” in sectors such as hydrogen production, biogas and carbon capture, utilization and storage. “Canada should look to match or exceed these incentives to avoid being perceived as less attractive to internationally mobile capital,” it reads.