OTTAWA,
Ont. -- June 10, 2009 -- Canada’s Environment
Minister, Jim Prentice, today announced
that the Government is taking an important
step towards setting up a carbon market
in Canada by moving forward with its Offset
System for Greenhouse Gases.
“The Offset System is
an important part of Canada’s efforts to
reduce greenhouse gases” said Minister Prentice.
“This system is one of several steps we
are taking as we finalize our domestic regulatory
framework for greenhouse gas emissions,
and marks a major milestone as we move towards
establishing a carbon market in Canada.”
The Offset System will
establish tradable credits and encourage
cost-effective domestic greenhouse gas reductions
in areas that will not be covered by planned
federal greenhouse gas regulations, like
the forestry and agricultural sectors. For
example, potential offset projects could
include methane capture and destruction
from landfill gas, the creation of new forests,
or agricultural soil management.
Companies subject to
the greenhouse gas emissions regulations
will be able to purchase offset credits
on the carbon market and use these credits
for compliance with their regulated targets.
In addition, other parties, such as small
businesses, individuals and travellers,
will be able to acquire and use these credits
to voluntarily offset the greenhouse gas
emissions from their activities.
The two draft guides
that will be published in the Canada Gazette
on June 12 propose rules and guidance on
the requirements and processes used to generate
offset credits and to verify the eligible
greenhouse gas reductions achieved from
a registered project. Interested parties
will have 60 days to comment on these guidance
documents.
The release of these
two draft guides follows the publication
of the first draft guide in August 2008,
which proposed the rules and guidance to
quantify greenhouse gas reductions for projects
in Canada’s Offset System. The final versions
of all three Offset System guides are expected
to be published in the fall of 2009 after
all comments have been reviewed.
More information about
Canada’s Offset System is available on Environment
Canada's Web site at: www.ec.gc.ca/creditscompensatoires-offsets
Frédéric Baril
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of the Environment
+ More
Canada Celebrates Clean
Air Day
OTTAWA, Ont. -- June
3, 2009 -- Canada's Environment Minister
Jim Prentice and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq,
today delivered a Clean Air Day message,
highlighting measures being taken by the
Government of Canada to report on air quality
and to support clean air.
“The Government of Canada
is committed to monitoring and communicating
the quality of air to Canadians" said
Minister Prentice. “Today, we are proud
to celebrate 40 years of National Air Pollution
Surveillance (NAPS) program success in providing
accurate current and long-term air quality
data information across Canada. At the same
time, we celebrate the expansion of the
Air Quality Health Index in Manitoba and
British Columbia.”
The Air Quality Health
Index uses the data from NAPS to provide
Canadians with the tools they need to better
understand the quality of the air they breathe
and information on what they can do to reduce
harmful health impacts. Forecasts are now
delivered in 40 locations across Canada
in partnership with provincial and municipal
governments.
“Canadians are becoming
increasingly aware of the effects that poor
air quality can have on their health,” said
Minister Aglukkaq. “I am pleased to see
the Air Quality Health Index expanding throughout
Canada and encourage Canadians to take advantage
of this great health tool.”
The Government of Canada
is taking concrete action to support clean
air by establishing stringent regulated
standards to limit tailpipe carbon dioxide
emissions from light-duty vehicles. We will
also move forward with regulations to reduce
volatile organic compound emissions from
everyday consumer products, such as paint.
Additionally, the Government is meeting
with its counterparts to build national,
continental and international strategies
leading to the UN Climate Change Conference
in Copenhagen, in December 2009.
Air Quality Health Index
is available at www.airhealth.ca and www.weatheroffice.gc.ca.
Environment Week Community
Calendar is available at www.ec.gc.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Frédéric Baril
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of the Environment
+ More
Owner of Atlantic Country
Composting Sentenced to Pay a $8,000 Penalty
for Violations of the Federal Fisheries
Act
ANTIGONISH, NS -- June
3, 2009 -- Mr. Terrence Eugene Boyle, owner
of Atlantic Country Composting, was ordered
to pay a penalty of $8,000 in Nova Scotia
provincial court in Antigonish yesterday
after pleading guilty to releasing a substance
from his facility which was deleterious
to fish into a stream that enters Tracadie
Harbour. Mr. Boyle also pleaded guilty to
altering fish habitat, stemming from the
same release.
Environment Canada laid
the charges against the company for violations
under the federal Fisheries Act.
The penalty includes
a court ordered payment of $5,000 to the
Environmental Damages Fund. Administered
by Environment Canada, the Fund provides
local organizations with the resources to
carry out projects that aim to restore or
remediate environmental damage or related
environmental work, such as parkland and
wildlife conservation and educational projects.
The remaining $3,000 constitutes a fine.
On January 14, 2008,
Fisheries and Oceans Canada staff alerted
Environment Canada to the presence of a
thick brown sludge in a stream leading to
Tracadie Harbour in Antigonish.
On January 15, 2008,
an Environment Canada enforcement officer,
in collaboration with Department of Fisheries
and Oceans Canada personnel, inspected the
Atlantic Country Composting facility in
Afton, Nova Scotia, to determine if the
sludge was being released from the facility.
The enforcement officer also collected samples
of the sludge. Test results from Environment
Canada’s lab in Moncton showed the sludge
was deleterious to fish.
On July 4, 2008, federal
and provincial charges were filed against
Atlantic Country Composting for violations
under the Fisheries Act in provincial court
in Antigonish.
Environment Canada investigates
offences under the pollution prevention
provisions of the federalFisheries Act and
the Canadian Environmental Protection Act,
1999. The Department ensures that businesses
and individuals comply with these Acts which
serve to protect Canada's environment.
For more information, please contact:
Media Relations
Environment Canada
+ More
Air Quality Health Index
Continues to Expand in British Columbia
OTTAWA, Ont. -- June
4, 2009 -- More British Columbians can access
a new health tool that will help protect
them and their families against the harmful
effects of air pollution.
The Air Quality Health
Index (AQHI) provides Canadians with a personal
health protection tool that allows them
to better understand the quality of the
air they breathe. In British Columbia the
AQHI is expanding into Whistler, Williams
Lake and Victoria (Western communities).
British Columbia was the first province
to adopt the AQHI and has served as a model
for the expansion to other provinces.
“I am pleased that the
Government of British Columbia is expanding
the Air Quality Health Index in the province,”
said the Honourable Stockwell Day, Regional
Minister for British Columbia and Canada’s
Minister for International Trade. “The AQHI
is the world’s first health based air quality
communications tool and is an effective
way to help British Columbians minimize
their exposure to the harmful effects of
air pollution.”
The AQHI provides current
and forecast information to Canadians about
the quality of the air they are breathing.
“The Air Quality Health
Index is an important initiative, and one
of the many things we’re doing in British
Columbia to ensure that our province continues
to enjoy the healthiest air quality possible,”
said B.C. Environment Minister Barry Penner.
Reduction of air pollution
is the key component to keeping Canada’s
air clean. Vehicle emissions remain a major
contributor of greenhouse gases and air
pollution. To address this issue, the Government
of Canada will establish stringent regulated
standards to limit tailpipe carbon dioxide
emissions. We will also be moving forward
with regulations to reduce volatile organic
compound (VOC) emissions from everyday consumer
products, such as paint. In addition, through
Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the Government
is investing $10 million to improve annual
reporting on key environmental indicators
such as clean air, clean water and greenhouse
gas emissions.
The AQHI is the result
of a strong partnership between the Government
of Canada, provincial and municipal governments,
and key stakeholder groups. The AQHI has
already become a useful guide for thousands
of Canadians that suffer from heart conditions,
asthma and other respiratory illnesses.
The AQHI can be found
online at www.airhealth.ca or www.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Frédéric Baril
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of the Environment
