Today, I want to chat about Bill C-12: An Act respecting transparency and accountability in Canada's efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050, better known as Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act. This piece of legislation received Royal Assent on June 29, 2021, meaning it is officially recognized as a law in Canada. This is an important piece of legislation because this is the FIRST time a Canadian Government has actually legislated emissions reductions and accountability for addressing climate change. ⁠
⁠
This law will establish a binding process to set five-year national emissions-reduction targets for 2030, 2035, 2040, and 2045, as well as develop emissions-reduction plans to achieve each target. The Minister of  of Environment and Climate Change will be responsible for producing assessment reports for each milestone and interim progress reports along the way.⁠
⁠
According to the Liberal Government, this law is set to deliver on their commitment to legislate Canada’s target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This means that Canada is essentially legally bound by these emission targets. The federal government will also be responsible for reporting on emission-reduction agreements with the provinces.⁠
⁠
Green groups have said laws like C-12 have helped other countries reduce their greenhouse-gas emissions. Justin Trudeau comfortably pledged to reduce Canada’s emissions by 40 to 45% below 2005 levels by 2030, which is significantly more than the 30% reduction called for in the Paris Agreement.⁠