Archived: Departmental Results Report 2018 to 2019: Department of Environment, chapter 1

Other efforts to combat climate change include accelerating the phase-out of coal, limiting GHG emissions from new natural gas-fired electricity generation, and reducing methane emissions from oil and gas.

Additionally, ECCC set performance-based emission standards for new heavy-duty vehicles and launched the mid-term evaluation of GHG emission standards for light-duty vehicles. ECCC’s $2 billion Low Carbon Economy Fund encouraged clean growth by supporting a range of emissions-reducing projects at the provincial, territorial, and local levels. The Climate Action Fund supported projects delivered by students, youth, Indigenous peoples, organizations, and medium-small enterprises that raised awareness and built capacity for increased actions on climate change.

To build climate change adaptation and resilience, ECCC launched the Canadian Centre for Climate Services website and support desk to give Canadians better access to information and support to help plan for climate impacts.

Canadians are facing extreme weather events across the country. ECCC’s progress in replacing outdated weather radars and the launch of  WeatherCAN, ECCC’s new weather app, have improved our capacity to provide critical weather and air quality information to Canadians.

The fight against climate change also requires a global response. ECCC continued to work closely with Global Affairs Canada to deliver Canada’s climate finance commitment of $2.65 billion over five years to support vulnerable developing countries transition to resilient, low-carbon economies. ECCC also remained a strong advocate for ensuring environmental issues and climate change are major considerations in Canada’s free-trade agreements.

ECCC also made significant progress in protecting and conserving nature. Canada’s Nature Fund – a $1.3 billion investment – protects biodiversity, including species-at-risk. These efforts include Canada’s first Indigenous Protected Area—Edéhzhíe Protected Area in the Northwest Territories.

To protect priority species, ECCC worked with provinces and territories to develop a Pan-Canadian Approach to Transforming Species at Risk Conservation in Canada through multispecies and ecosystem-based planning and on the ground actions.

ECCC’s ongoing pollution prevention efforts included collaboration with provinces and territories to create a Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste. The strategy takes a life-cycle approach to addressing plastic waste, and proposes a framework to keep plastics in the economy and out of our environment. It will be key to meeting Canada’s commitments made under the Ocean Plastics Charter, along with the Government’s commitment to banning certain harmful single-use plastics by 2021.

In the face of the many environmental challenges facing Canada and the world, ECCC also recognizes that the Government of Canada must lead by example. ECCC proposed a new 2019–2022 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy that sets out goals and actions to achieve Canada’s environmental sustainability priorities, and reported to Canadians through the 2018 Progress Report on the significant results achieved under the previous strategy.

I invite you to read the ECCC 2018–19 Departmental Results Report to learn more about the contributions ECCC is making to improve the environment, prosperity, and health of all Canadians. As Minister, I look forward to building on these important accomplishments in the years to come.