Canada’s climate action plan is one of the least ambitious among the world’s leading industrial countries, and none of the seven countries are anywhere near the strategies they would need to hit a 1.5°C target for average global warming, according to a Climate Action Network-France report released on the eve of the annual G7 meeting.
“The report card says Canada’s current policies are consistent with global warming exceeding 4.0°C compared to pre-industrial levels, more than twice the stated goal of the Paris Agreement of staying as close to 1.5°C as possible,” The Canadian Press reports, in a story republished by Global News. “The United States and Japan are also both in the 4.0°C category, while the other four G7 members—France, Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom—have policies consistent with more than 3.0°C in warming.”
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The CAN-I report “applauds Canada’s plan to eliminate coal as a source of electricity by 2030, the national price on pollution, and the goal to stop selling combustion engine cars by 2040,” CP states. “But it says all of the government plans ‘remain insufficient to meet Canada’s targets and the Paris Agreement’.”
“It’s depressing,” said Climate Action Network-Canada Executive Director Catherine Abreu. “The richest countries in the world are delivering the poorest performance, and some of the smallest and poorest are leading the way.”
Noting that the G7 represent 60% of global net wealth and nearly 50% of global GDP, the We Mean Business Coalition issued a statement urging the seven countries to “set a clear pathway for a just transition to net-zero GHG emissions by 2050,” speed up their carbon reduction commitments under the Paris Agreement, and “give business regulatory certainty by backing these national plans and targets with ambitious sectoral goals and policies” driving toward a net-zero carbon economy.
“This ambition is good for business,” We Mean Business states. “Companies that have set Paris-aligned emission reduction targets report improved brand reputation, increased investor confidence, accelerated innovation, and competitive advantage in the marketplace. However, the private sector cannot do it alone. Investing in and building the zero-carbon economy at the necessary pace and scale requires clear, ambitious government policies.”
The last paragraph needs broadcasting to the world. Big companies are asleep at the wheel or unwilling to change policies, either of which are an abrogation of duty