The Government of Canada supports climate and clean air initiatives that will help developing countries reduce methane emissions

From: Environment and Climate Change Canada

News release

November 9, 2021 – Glasgow, United Kingdom

Clean air is vital to our health, a prosperous economy and a thriving environment. The Government of Canada is committed to reducing short-lived climate pollutants, an important group of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and air pollutants that warm the climate and contribute to significant air quality issues, such as smog. Short-lived climate pollutants include black carbon, methane, ground-level ozone, and hydrofluorocarbons. Because they last for a short time in the atmosphere compared to GHGs such as carbon dioxide, reducing them can have valuable near-term benefits in the fight against climate change while also protecting human health.

The Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, announced today that the Government of Canada will invest $10 million over five years towards the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) Trust Fund. This was announced at the Climate and Clean Air Ministerial, conveyed by the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, and Ghana’s Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Kwaku Afriyie, where members committed to step up ambition and action to address climate and air issues, with a special focus on reducing methane emissions.

Canada’s contribution will provide critical long-term support to advance the mandate of the CCAC. A key part of the Coalition’s work is outlined in the new 2030 Strategy, which members endorsed at the meeting. The Coalition’s work integrates national climate and clean air strategies to reduce the emissions of short-lived climate pollutants across key sectors.

During the meeting, Minister Guilbeault and CCAC members expressed their support for the Global Methane Pledge that was endorsed by world leaders, including Prime Minister Trudeau, last week at COP26. Ministers welcomed the CCAC’s leadership in supporting the implementation of the goals of the Pledge. In addition, the ministers formally launched the CCAC Methane Flagship, which will strategically focus the Coalition’s activities for one year on methane to deliver on the Global Methane Pledge.

The Government of Canada will continue to work closely with the Coalition and its members. Reducing short-lived climate pollutants is a critical part of a comprehensive plan to address climate change and implement the Paris Agreement.

Quotes

“Reducing short-lived climate pollutants will have an immediate impact on the air we breathe and is one of the fastest, most cost-effective ways to combat climate change. As a founding member of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, Canada is proud to be a leader in the development of the Coalition’s 2030 Strategy. We are pleased to join the global community in endorsing this Strategy. Canada is stepping up to reduce short-lived climate pollutants, including methane, at home and abroad. I look forward to working with CCAC’s partners to meet this challenge.”
– The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Quick facts

  • The CCAC is a voluntary partnership of governments, intergovernmental organizations, businesses, scientific institutions and civil society organizations committed to protecting the climate and improving air quality through actions to reduce short-lived climate pollutants.

  • Canada served as the Co-Chair of the CCAC from 2016-2018 and has contributed CAD$23 million to date.

  • Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and climate pollutant that accounts for about 13 percent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

  • Reducing methane emissions will reduce ozone formation and can prevent over 200,000 premature deaths each year, hundreds of thousands of asthma-related emergency room visits, and over 20 million tonnes of crop losses a year by 2030.

  • On November 2, 2021, Canada signed the US- and EU-led Global Methane Pledge that commits countries to a collective goal of reducing global methane emissions by at least 30 percent from 2020 levels by 2030. The Pledge was formally launched at COP26 and now has over 100 members.

  • The Government of Canada is also committed to developing a plan to reduce methane emissions across the broader Canadian economy and to reducing oil and gas methane emissions by at least 75 percent below 2012 levels by 2030. Canada is the first and only country to support the Pledge and the 75 percent goal, and our approach will include regulations.

  • On November 3, the Government of Canada announced a $20 million investment in GHGSat of Montreal, through Sustainable Development Technology Canada. GHGSat will use this funding to expand its fleet of high-tech satellites that track greenhouse gas emissions from the Earth’s orbit. The methane emissions detection data will be provided to the International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) to help cut methane around the world.

Associated links

Contacts

Joanna Sivasankaran
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change
819-790-1907
Joanna.Sivasankaran@ec.gc.ca

Media Relations
Environment and Climate Change Canada
819-938-3338 or 1-844-836-7799 (toll-free)
media@ec.gc.ca

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