Is North America Finally on the Right Climate Action Path?

June 30, 2016 – Having reached the mid-point of 2016 yesterday’s joint announcement by Canada, Mexico and the United States, may finally put us on the path to a sustainable low-carbon future here in North America. When President Obama spoke to the Canadian Parliament he spoke about climate change as “no longer an abstraction……It’s not an issue we can put off for the future. It is happening now.”

He talked about the melting of Canada’s Athabasca Glacier, permafrost in the Arctic, Alaskan villages sliding into the sea. He said, “This is not a conspiracy….not a hoax.” He talked about rising sea levels impacting nations like Bangladesh and the Pacific islands. And he confronted naysayers and skeptics in challenging them on their opinions that tackling climate change or growing the economy could not be done together. He pointed to sustained economic growth in the United States in the last decade despite a drop in net carbon emissions over the same period and remarked if “the United States can do it, the whole world can unleash economic growth and protect our planet.” Most telling was his last comment on the issue: “This is the only planet we’ve got. And this may be the last shot we’ve got to save it.”

The speech concluded a meeting of North America’s three elected leaders, Canada’s Justin Trudeau,d Mexico’s Enrique Pena Nieto and the U.S. President. The three agreed to a North American Climate, Energy, and Environment Partnership with a coordinated action plan that includes:

• achieving a 50% objective for North America of power from clean sources by 2025 through a mix of renewable and nuclear. The current mix is 37% renewable and nuclear.
• incorporating carbon capture and storage technologies in the plans for achieving the 50% objective mentioned above.
• reduction of methane emissions from oil and gas sources by 40 to 45% by 2025, and develop reduction strategies for other sources including agriculture and waste methane emissions.
• phasing out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by 2025.
• an industrial sector strategy that accurately establishes an inventory on black carbon emissions across North America so that target reductions can be implemented.
• reduction in food waste in North America in line with United Nations’ sustainable development goals of 50% by 2030.
• development of cross-border transmission projects that incorporate renewable sources feeding the grid and study options for North American energy system integration.
• government commitment by Canada and the U.S. to increase electricity purchases from clean energy sources to 100% by 2025.
• sharing by all three countries on methodologies, tools, analysis and knowledge gained from green government initiatives.
• improvements to appliance and equipment efficiency, industrial and commercial energy reduction, and supply chain standards to eliminate carbon.
• joint research on clean technologies in these areas: methane emissions, carbon capture utilization and storage, energy storage, efficiency and grids
• shared mapping using geospatial information to define throughout North America optimal sites for solar and other renewable projects.
• an accelerated program to move government transportation to electric vehicles and other clean forms of transportation with the establishment of an expanded charging infrastructure.
• align all three countries’ emission standards on diesel and other fossil fuel burning transportation.
• collaboration with indigenous leaders and communities in decision making to address climate change and climate resiliance
• conservation of migratory habitats for birds and the Monarch butterfly, and conserve and improve biological corridors for marine and land species across all jurisdictions.
• addressing invasive alien species on a continental scale.
• implementing collaborative early warning systems for natural disasters and extreme weather.
• Enhancing coastal wetlands and the preservation of coastal ecosystems.
• investing in those communities most impacted by the transition from fossil fuel energy to renewables to help them diversify, create jobs, and ensure that workers don’t get left behind.

As long as this list is it is not fully reflective of the full text of the partnership. Other than the European Union’s climate change action plans no other continent-wide strategy existed until yesterday. And with the United States the second largest global emitter of greenhouse gas emissions it is important that North America is now setting a standard on tackling climate change. Now two powerful international blocs can work together in meeting the commitments made at COP21 in Paris. It all makes sense since the atmosphere knows no borders, neither do extreme weather events, and no country acting alone can save the planet.