Canada's carbon-intensive oil and gas sector must significantly reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, and must also confront the prospect of a decline in demand for its product over the long term. Oilsands producers now rely on technologies to meet reduction targets that likely won’t be scalable and affordable until after 2030; however, the sector as a whole is better positioned than other parts of the economy to meet or exceed Canada’s 2030 emissions reduction targets.

Despite reports to the contrary, the Canadian oil and gas sector does have the potential to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions it produces to the levels set out in Canada’s Emissions Reduction Plan. This is not only imperative to meeting our climate targets and international obligations, but critical in order for the industry to remain competitive in a global marketplace that’s shifting away from oil and increasingly placing value on low-carbon energy.

The Pembina Institute, David Suzuki Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, and the Clean Air Task Force offer comments to Environment and Climate Change Canada on the development of new policy to meet and exceed Canada’s commitment to address methane emissions. Rapidly tackling methane will be crucial to achieving milestone emission reductions during this decade, thereby making important early progress towards Canada’s 2030 target (of a 45% emissions reduction from 2005 levels).

The oil and gas sector, as the single largest contributor to Canada’s emissions, has the ability to make or break the country’s climate promises. We are calling for the Government of Canada's upcoming Emissions Reduction Plan to include an ambitious cap on oil and gas sector emissions (a 45% reduction from 2005 levels by 2030). Our report released this week shows the six areas where GHG reductions could be made, using technology and funds that the sector already has available.

As Canada phases out coal power, other energy sources must replace it. This study shows that in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, the clear winner is clean energy: a mix of resources (portfolios of renewables, battery storage, etc.) provide the same consistency of services as new gas or nuclear power plants, but at a lower cost. To provide reliable, affordable electricity and new jobs, both provinces should target clean energy portfolios for their next investments.