Dear Editor:
A world heat record was crushed earlier this summer on three consecutive days by a statistically unfathomable margin of +4.6°C (+8°F) in Lytton, British Columbia.
And during this historical moment, Canadian Senators voted for science and cooperation to lead the way forward in dealing with the climate emergency. On June 29, the Senate passed Bill C12, the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act. The Act will:
– establish a long-term target of reaching net-zero emissions in 2050;
– legislate setting five-year milestone emissions reductions targets starting in 2030, with an interim objective in 2026;
– require climate targets to be set 10 years in advance;
– create a framework for detailed climate policy planning and progress reporting;
– legislate a Net-Zero Advisory Body composed of diverse stakeholders and rights-holders to advise the Environment and Climate Change Minister on targets and plans;
– require the minister to consider the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in climate planning and target-setting; and
– mandate a legislative review of the Bill 5 years after its adoption.
The passing of Act C12 comes on the backdrop of a leaked IPCC draft about climate tipping points. The impacts are likely to be much closer than most people realize, and will fundamentally reshape life in the coming decades even if greenhouse gas emissions are brought under some control.
It is an undeniable fact that we are in a climate emergency. We have been in a state of climate confusion as a country since the early 2000s instigated by a heinous climate denial machine. The next generation needs us to shift the paradigm fast.
Canadians from many organizations spoke truth to power and were heard. This is what a healthy democracy looks like. Act C12 set us on a course for a better tomorrow. We have only just begun.
Ron Moore,
Hillsburgh