Canadian environment ministers chart progress of actions on climate change and air quality

November 3, 2017 – Vancouver, British Columbia

The Government of Canada is committed to working with provincial, territorial, and Indigenous partners to ensure clean air, clean water and clean soil for Canadians; to fight climate change; and to build a stronger, more sustainable economy.

Today, Canada’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna, participated in a meeting of the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment to discuss air quality and climate change. This annual gathering of federal, provincial, and territorial environment ministers was hosted by British Columbia’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, George Heyman, this year’s CCME chair.

The event was an opportunity for environment ministers to review the progress on their climate actions and to identify further areas of collaboration and partnership.

During today’s meeting, the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment released a new State of the Air Report, an interactive web report informed by all provinces and territories on air quality and the efforts of governments to improve it. The report shows that Canada reduced its air emissions as the economy grew.

Air pollutants that cause smog and acid rain have decreased, helping save thousands of lives and reducing trips to the hospital.

Over the past few decades, federal, provincial, and territorial governments have worked together and have taken action to reduce air-pollutant emissions from sources such as vehicles, power plants, and residential wood burning. These actions have contributed to reductions of smog and acid rain.

The government’s environmental initiatives, such as phasing out coal-fired electricity by 2030, will further improve the country’s air quality and public health.

By world standards, Canada ranks high in terms of clean and healthy air. The actions we are taking today will lead to even better conditions in our towns and cities for generations to come.

The federal provincial and territorial governments agreed to tougher standards for nitrogen dioxide, which will result in further improvement in the quality of our air and improve the health of Canadians.

Prior to their meeting, Ministers held discussions with representatives of the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, and the Métis National Council, sharing ideas and perspectives about opportunities and challenges as Canada moves to a stronger, more resilient, low-carbon economy.

At the end of the meeting, the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment’s presidency transferred from Minister Heyman to Minister McKenna. She will hold this position for a year and will host and chair the next meeting in 2018.

Federal and provincial and territorial governments continue to take action against climate change: pricing carbon pollution; reducing emissions in each sector of the economy; adapting to climate change; and supporting clean technologies, innovation, and jobs.