The petition closes for signatures on March 20th, 2021.
Addressing the climate crisis demands that Canada strengthen our greenhouse gas emission reduction targets, transition away from fossil fuels, and invest in a green economy that respects our climate obligations and aligns with science.
In November, the government introduced Bill C-12, the Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act. Unfortunately, as it stands, this bill fails on multiple fronts and lacks urgency.
The IPCC recommendations are clear - most of the heavy lifting on climate change needs to happen before 2030 in order to hold global warming below 1.5°C. However, Bill C-12 would not require the government to set new emissions reduction targets until 2030, and offers no repercussions if the goals set out are not achieved.
Unfortunately, this makes C-12 a blueprint for more inaction and shifts responsibility to future governments.
Canada has a poor track record when it comes to meeting our climate goals. In 2015, Prime Minister Trudeau announced that Canada was back in the fight against climate change, and Canada committed to implementing a new national greenhouse gas emission reduction targets by 2020. Five years passed, the government failed to set new targets, and the woefully inadequate targets set by Stephen Harper’s Conservative government remain in place. This is unacceptable!
We are losing the possibility of holding to 1.5°C with each passing month, and once this window closes, it closes for good. We cannot afford to implement a plan that is only delaying action and responsibility. The government needs to create a real plan for a 60% reduction in emissions from 2005 levels by 2030, with clear enforceable targets and milestones starting in 2025.
This is why I have sponsored the parliamentary petition below. It calls on the government to take urgent action based on science and independent expertise to make Bill C-12 a world-class climate law. I urge you to sign this petition before it closes on March 20th, 2021.
The Green Party caucus have been strongly advocating for more urgent action to meet our emission targets and for a just, green post-pandemic recovery. We will continue to do so, because we can do nothing less.
Thank you for signing and sharing this petition.
e-3184 Petition to the House of Commons Whereas:
Bill C-12 is a first-of-its-kind climate accountability legislation in Canada;
As it currently stands, the bill is not strong enough to help Canada meet its climate targets, and does not legally bind our government to targets; and
It does not hold our government accountable to creating jobs for workers transitioning out of the fossil fuel industry, and does not indicate its commitment to work with Indigenous nations on actions to combat climate change.
We, the undersigned, citizens of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to take urgent action based on science and independent expertise to make Bill C-12 a world-class climate law by adopting three amendments to the bill before it passes:
1. Set the first emissions target for 2025, strengthen the role of the advisory body and the role of the Environment Commissioner, and ban fossil fuel executives from the advisory panel; 2. Bill C-12 should be aligned with Canada’s commitment to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, putting workers and communities first, with no exceptions, and set targets for sustainable job creation to ensure a just transition for all workers; and 3. Create true legal accountability for the government by setting clear, unconditional obligations on the Minister of Environment to actually meet targets, not just plan to meet them.
Photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels
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