P.M. Justin Trudeau and President Barack Obama. (Source: Rob Petersen/flickr)
Canada under P.M. Justin Trudeau is getting serious about climate change, at long last. Visiting Washington on Thursday, Trudeau and President Obama announced that their two countries have committed to cutting methane emissions by 40-45% below 2012 levels by 2025. They will also take steps to fight climate change in the Arctic, accelerate the implementation of the Paris global climate change accord, and speed up the development of green technologies.
Elected last October, Trudeau promised to begin a new era of Canadian politics (see Blouin News’ coverage). Under his conservative predecessor, Stephen Harper, Canada was an outlier among Western nations in its stance towards climate change. The Harper administration was a strong advocate for expanding Canada’s heavily-polluting oil sands industry, and during his tenure the country did not commit to large reductions in GHG emissions. Harper criticized Obama’s decisions to delay and ultimately reject the Keystone XL pipeline, contributing to a somewhat icy spell in the governments’ relationship.
Liberal Trudeau, on the other hand, did not criticize the pipeline rejection, and he has pledged to pursue an ambitious environmental agenda to coincide with Obama’s policies. Already under his leadership, Canada played a helpful role in pushing through the Paris accord in December.
Ottawa’s new attitude towards climate change is very welcome. For one thing, it gives Canada more credibility abroad. And as an Arctic nation, Canada will feel the effects of climate change more strongly than many other nations. By taking bolder actions now, it can help limit the harm that climate change will bring about. And patching up ties with Washington is a nice bonus.
For more on climate change, see Blouin News’ recent analyses.
