Over the last four months,…

Over the last four months, the temperature at Toronto’s International airport exceeded 28 degrees C on more than 40 days. In Quebec, the only province in Canada that tracks heat-related deaths in real time, July’s heat wave claimed the lives of over 90 people in only one week.

Wildfires, fuelled by climate-driven droughts and heat, threatened the lives, health, and well-being of millions of Canadians this summer. Ontario had 1312 wildfires this year; up from a 10-year average of 716. These fires were fought by about 1000 firefighters, forced evacuations on thousands of people in several northern communities, and exposed tens of thousands of residents to elevated levels of toxic air pollution.

The National Academy of Science published a study which suggests that we are approaching a tipping point with climate change; a point from which there may be no return. This study found that we are quickly approaching a global temperature that could trigger feedback cycles that drive global temperature to 4 or 5 degrees above pre-industrial temperatures. These are temperatures that would, in the words of the researchers, make Earth uninhabitable.

It is in this context that we believe the government should withdraw Bill 4 and maintain Ontario’s existing cap-and-trade program and the many programs that it is supports.

In Ontario, where the greatest sources of climate emissions are the transportation sector (33%), buildings (22%), and industry (18%), we need policies and programs that deeply and quickly cut emissions from these sources. Ontario’s cap and trade program has been encouraging the industrial sector to cut emissions in a cost-effective way, while collecting $2.8 billion in funds that were being used to fund public transit, the electrification of the transportation sector, cycling infrastructure, and energy efficiency projects and renewable energy projects for farms, hospitals, schools, businesses and residences. In other words, these funds were being used to encourage reductions in climate emissions from the other large sources of emissions; those that are harder to reduce by regulation.

In fact, many of the programs supported by Ontario’s existing cap and trade program can produce immediate and long-term benefits for human health, the cost of living, and the economy. Investments in public transit reduce air pollution, save commuters money, and decrease traffic congestion. Investments in energy efficiency for homes, schools, hospitals and low-income housing reduce air pollution, save consumers money, and save tax dollars, while creating local jobs. Investments in renewable energy and electric technologies reduce air pollution and health care costs while encouraging innovation, new economic opportunities, and new jobs.

Ontario needs a Climate Action Plan that commits Ontario to:
• Meet the long-term hard emission target needed to meet Canada’s international commitments to limit warming to 1.5 degrees C (i.e. reducing Ontario’s climate emissions to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050);
• Meet the benchmark targets needed to ensure we meet our long-term target (i.e. 15% below 1990 levels by 2020 and 37% below 1990 levels by 2030);
• Review its progress on climate reductions on an annual basis and to review its plan every 5 years;
• Establish policies and programs for the transportation, industry and buildings sectors that have shown with modelling to be capable of reducing climate emissions to the degree needed to meet our benchmarks and target;
• Prioritize those climate action policies and programs which provide health and social co-benefits by reducing air pollution, increasing access to jobs and services, increasing levels of physical activity, reducing traffic congestion, producing local jobs and/or reducing consumer costs and taxes.

We need an ambitious Climate Action Plan for Ontario and we need it quickly.