Sept08:ES&E Magazine
9/22/08
9:32 PM
Page 39
Climate Change The revised Framework includes an important innovation from the original 2007 version. This is the introduction of additional rules that apply only to the oil sands and coal-fired electricity sectors and will effectively require these sectors to establish carbon capture and storage mechanisms for new facilities opening in 2012 or later. Although the details concerning these rules have yet to be released, the government indicates that "growth in the oil sands must occur responsibly", and that the rules "will effectively end the construction of dirty coal-fired plants". Another new commitment is to establish a "clean electricity task force" to
work with provinces and industry to achieve a further reduction of 25 megatonnes from the electricity sector by 2020. The revised Framework is short on details, but does say that: "Specific measures could include: development of an East-West transmission grid and sub-sea cable on the Atlantic coast; development of further major hydroelectric projects, such as Peace River C and Lower Churchill; inwww.esemag.com
troduction of new nuclear reactors; and retirement of fossil-fuel electricity generation facilities at the end of their expected life." The revised Framework recognizes the specific challenges faced by the cement and fertilizer sectors. The Framework says that the cement regulations will include an incentive to use waste material from other industries instead of clinker. It also promises a task force comprising a Member of Parliament and an industry representative to make recommendations for fertilizer emission targets that take these challenges into account but are "consistent with the overall framework". GHG emissions reductions from the oil sands and electricity sectors are expected to account for 55% of the total reductions from industry by 2020. The reductions from industry as a whole will only go halfway towards meeting the national 20% target by 2020. The rest of the reductions will come from other regulatory initiatives, including new fuel consumption standards for cars, light trucks and sport utility vehicles, and new energy efficiency requirements for certain commercial and consumer products, such as dishwashers and commercial boilers. In addition to GHGs, the initial version of the Framework in 2007 also addressed emissions of air pollutants such as sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. The revised draft deals exclusively with GHGs, saying only that the regulatory framework for other air pollutants will be finalized in spring 2008 and that the regulations will reflect this. It is important to recognize that the revised Framework is still just an outline. The actual draft regulations will be published in the Canada Gazette in the fall of 2008. The regulations are expected to be finalized the following year and to come into force on January 1, 2010. The full impact on industry, including the penalties for missing emission targets, will not be known until the regulations are unveiled. Canada's offset system for GHGs In addition to the final Regulatory Framework, the government has released a discussion paper regarding the design of the offset system. This indicontinued overleaf...
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39 | September 2008