How Canada Thumbs Its Nose at the Global Climate Summit

[Oscar]

How Canada Thumbs Its Nose at the Global Climate Summit

QUOTE: "We used to pledge lower emissions. Now we push for higher oil production."

Ian Urquhart - November 11, 2025 - The Tyee

EXCERPT: "Once upon a time, Canada spoke like a progressive climate change actor. On the eve of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, its national Green Plan pledged to stabilize greenhouse gas or GHG emissions at 1990 levels by 2000. Canada wouldn’t use its relatively small share of global emissions as an excuse to do nothing domestically.

Conservative and Liberal governments alike flouted that promise. By 2000 Canadian emissions were 140 million tonnes, 23 per cent higher than 1990 levels.

Failure summarizes the Canadian climate change record since 1990 — failure to meet any GHG emissions reduction ambition. “Targets and plans have come and gone,” the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development said two years ago, “and Canada has yet to deliver on any.” Canada is the only member of the G7 whose GHG emissions have increased since 1990.

Explaining this failure is easy — Alberta’s oilsands. Thanks to governments and technology, oilsands production began to grow vigorously in the late 1990s. This exploitation propelled Canada into fourth place among world oil producers. Thanks to the oilsands Canada supplies more crude to the United States than the 12 Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries member states combined. . . . . . "

[ https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2025/11/11/ ... ign=171125 ]