Under the Climate Change Accountability Act, the B.C. government is legally required to submit a report to the legislature each year outlining progress on climate action.
In 2018, the government passed legislation requiring a 16 per cent cut in emissions from 2007 levels by 2025 and 40 per cent by 2030.
But the latest report projects emissions will only be 2.6 per cent below 2007 levels by 2025 and 20 per cent lower in 2030.
This is far short of the mandated targets.
West Coast Environmental Law recently stated that: 鈥淭he B.C. government has officially acknowledged it is not on track to meet its 2025 and 2030 climate targets (not even close). At the same time, it continues to greenlight massive fossil fuel developments, directly undermining its own climate commitments.鈥�
Jeremy Valeriote, BC Green interim leader, recently stated: 鈥淲e鈥檝e got legislative targets, and we鈥檙e not even projected to be halfway there.鈥�
Increased emissions from oil and gas extraction and transportation are largely to blame.
Last year鈥檚 report was quite hopeful and painted a different picture.
The government forecast that its CleanBC plan would result in the province almost meeting its 2030 target.
Why were predictions so far off?
Journalist Zoe Yunker, said: 鈥淏ut that projection included the impact of rules the province had not enforced and targets with no clear policies supporting them.鈥�
Matt Hulse, a lawyer for Ecojustice says: 鈥淲e have been calling on the B.C. government for the past four or five years of reporting to deliver more detail in these reports so we can understand the progress they anticipate making.鈥�
The report said it would 鈥渆nhance鈥� its program to require industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but offered no details on what that might look like.
Even though these details were missing, the report included these assumptions in last year鈥檚 forecast.
How can B.C. close the growing gap between its climate targets and anticipated emissions reductions?
Kathryn Harrison, a UBC professor, says the government could describe in detail which specific policies and rules it is relying on in its modelling.
It could be broken down policy by policy.
The report should clearly lay out which LNG projects it is including in its emissions forecasts as that is a big area of uncertainty.
For example: LNG Canada鈥檚 second phase would produce an additional 2.3 megatonnes of emissions, roughly five per cent of the province鈥檚 total emissions.
Those new LNG emissions would throw a wrench into B.C.鈥檚 climate targets.
B.C. claims to be a climate leader but it has never met a climate target.
Meeting these targets is crucial if B.C. hopes to protect human health and well-being, protect B.C.鈥檚 natural ecosystems and water resources, prepare for and adapt to the impacts of a changing climate, and promote economic stability.
B.C. must do better.
Jane Weixl is with Climate Action Now! North Okanagan
