Premier John Horgan has said climate action is a high priority, yet his government's natural-gas framework focuses on attracting new fossil-fuel investment and falls short of demonstrating how LNG might fit within a plan to meet B.C.'s climate commitments.
The government has pledged to develop both a climate strategy to get B.C. back on track to our climate targets, and an energy road map for transitioning to a low-carbon economy.
The premier is now promising LNG development can proceed and we can meet our 2030 and 2050 climate targets. Questions remain regarding how the carbon pollution associated with proposed LNG projects will fit within the province's carbon budget. Major LNG development would require significant emissions reductions in the gas-supply chain, and an increase in the scale of emissions reductions needed in other sectors.
Although the government has consistently reiterated its commitment to B.C.'s climate targets, the LNG announcement did not explain how the gas sector will be required to reduce its carbon pollution.
We look forward to seeing a new suite of measures introduced and implemented to reduce carbon pollution across all sectors. Otherwise, we risk missing out on the benefits of clean growth.
Karen Tam Wu
Acting B.C. director
Pembina Institute
The (Victoria) Times Colonist published this letter to the editor on March 25, 2018 (page A11).
