As the UN climate talks draw closer, Canada has a lot of work to do to meet its goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Collectively, Canadians need to reduce total greenhouse gas emissions 40 to 45 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions across the economy by 2050.
And while countries like the UK have slashed their emissions levels, Canada is one of the few nations where emissions continue to skyrocket and where fossil fuel extraction continues to rise every year despite our climate targets.
Given its track record, how will Canada achieve its goal of reaching net zero by 2050?
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In the next in line Conversations event on Thursday, 11 am PT / 2 pm ET, host and National Observer of Canada Deputy Managing Editor David McKie will discuss how renewable energy can put the country on the right path to achieving its goals with Clean Energy Canada CEO Merran Smith, Canadian Climate Options Institute senior economist Dale Begin, and the Executive Director of WaterPower Canada, Anne-Raphaëlle Audouin.
Reach net zero through renewable electricity
“If we wanted to use 100% renewable electricity, Canada is one of the countries where this is really possible,” said Audouin.
She says that for that to happen, it would take a list of clean energy providers working together to fill in the gaps, rather than competing for market dominance.
“Canada couldn’t be powered by wind and solar power alone, not even batteries. That said, it turns out that renewables work very well together, ”he said. “Hydropower already accounts for more than 90 percent of Canada’s renewable generation, and 60 percent of the country’s total electricity needs are currently met by this flexible, distributable and abundant source of base load renewable electricity. It is no exaggeration to imagine hydropower and wind and solar power increasingly working together to clean up our grid. In fact, hydropower already supports and enables intermittent renewables, such as wind and solar, to enter the grid. “
He noted that while hydropower alone won’t be the solution, its long history and indisputable set of attributes – hydropower has been in Canada since the 1890s – will make it a key part of the clean energy transition. required to replace coal, natural gas and oil, which still make up about 20 percent of Canada’s energy sources.
Canada’s extensive access to water, wind, biomass, solar, geothermal and ocean energy, and a federal government that is committed to climate goals, puts us in a good position to lead the way to a net zero future. and, finally, the electrification of our economy. So what is holding the country back?
The new reality of renewables
According to Clean Energy Canada, it is possible to grow the clean energy sector, but only if companies invest massively in renewables and governments provide guidance and oversight.
A recent Clean Energy Canada and Navius Research modeling study Exploring the energy landscape here in Canada over the next decade shows that our clean energy sector is expected to grow by approximately 50 percent by 2030 to around 640,000 people. The clean energy industry already provides 430,500 jobs, more than the entire real estate sector, and that growth is expected to accelerate as our dependence on oil and gas declines. In fact, clean energy jobs in Alberta are projected to grow 164% over the next decade.
Currently, the provinces with the most hydroelectric generation are also those with the lowest electricity rates. Wind and solar are now on par with, or even more competitive, than natural gas, and that could have big implications for other major sectors of the economy. Supermarket giant Loblaws (which owns brands such as President’s Choice, Joe Fresh, and the Asian supermarket chain T&T) rolled out its fleet of fully electric delivery trucks in recent years, and Hydro-Québec just signed a $ 20 billion deal. dollars to help fuel and decarbonize the state. from New York for the next 25 years.
On The new reality, Smith writes that many carbon-intensive industries, such as the mining sector, could also potentially benefit from increased demand for certain natural resources, such as lithium and nickel, as the world shifts to electric vehicles and clean energy.
“Oil and gas may have dominated Canada’s energy past, but it is Canada’s clean energy sector that will define its new reality,” he emphasized.
Despite its vast potential to be one of the world’s leaders in clean energy, Canada has a long way to go towards net zero. Despite the country being home to some of the world’s leading cleantech companies, such as BC-based hydrogen fuel cell suppliers Ballard Power and Loop Energy and Nova Scotia-based carbon capture company CarbonCure, the country continues to expand fossil fuel extraction to the point. that the emissions are projected to jump to a value of around 1,500 MtCO2 by 2030.
“We remain a resource-based economy and one of the largest per capita greenhouse gas emitting countries in the world,” Audouin said. “Climate targets are one thing. But now we have the right environment, we have the right policies … Everyone is getting on the climate bus. What we need now is energetic action to push renewables to center stage. ”
Get in National Observer of Canada on October 21 to discuss how Canada will reach net zero emissions by 2050. Register here.
Reference-www.nationalobserver.com