Federal Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin says Ottawa is acting with “urgency” to satisfy requirements outlined in the federal budget for abolishing the oil-and-gas emissions cap, but she did not provide a specific timeline for its removal during a weekend speech.
Dabrusin and Energy Minister Tim Hodgson held a press conference in Toronto on Nov. 9 to promote the government’s Climate Competitiveness Strategy and discuss how the budget will impact both the environment and the country’s economy.
One of the items in the climate strategy is moving away from the federal oil and gas emissions cap introduced by Prime Minister Mark Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, and so far maintained by the Carney government, while Alberta and Saskatchewan ask for it to be removed. The prairie provinces argue the cap acts as a de facto limit on oil and gas production, amounting to an infringement on their jurisdictions, while Ottawa maintains the policy is intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, falling under federal environmental authority….