Environment and Climate Change Canada
This article was first published in Castanet Nov 14, 2023
It was also picked up by Ground News
Canada has one of the highest per capita carbon emissions in the globe, nearly 15 metric tons per person. There’s a tendency to lead with “it’s not our fault” and list reasons why Canada cannot be expected to do any better. Let's look more closely at these arguments.
Canada’s emissions are higher because we have more forest and therefore more forest fires. Does this explain Canada’s emissions? The grim answer is that the wildfires are not raising Canada’s 15 metric tons per capita because wildfires are not counted towards the total.
Canada’s emissions are higher because it is cold. There’s an argument to be made that Canada’s emissions are high because we experience a serious winter, sometimes as low as -30 C. Unfortunately that doesn’t wash. Finland (6.97 tons per capita, 2021) and Sweden (3.82 tons of CO2 per capita in 2021) also have serious winters (plus more saunas) without getting anywhere near Canada’s 15 metric tons per person. The built environment is a significant fraction of our carbon emissions. Why do buildings contribute so much to Canada’s footprint? In Canada we make inefficient choices when it comes to heating and cooling and a combination of old stock and less aggressive building codes lead to leaks in the building envelope and insufficient insulation.
Canada’s emissions are higher because it is big. Transportation is a main contributor to Canada’s emissions. Here we have to separate transportation into two categories: freight and private vehicles. About one third of transportation emissions come from transporting freight. Rail can move the same amount of freight using less fuel -- 68% of Canada’s freight goes by rail, one of the highest rates in the world -- which is good. Private vehicles are where Canada really does poorly. We purchase vehicles with low gas mileage, we purchase heavier vehicles -- basically we buy more trucks. Do we drive more trucks because of Canada’s winters? The biggest boost to winter driving safety comes from winter snow tires which have a better tread and remain pliable at low temperatures. The second most important thing is having all wheel drive -- giving you traction to get going. Vehicle mass is third in line, and not a strategy employed in Finland or Sweden.
Canada is one of the largest producers of oil and gas in the world -- oil and gas extraction are simply high-emission industries. Let’s ignore, for the moment, the carbon emissions that come from burning fossil fuels and look at carbon emissions from extracting and refining fossil fuels. It takes 30% more carbon emissions to get the average barrel of Canadian oil out of the ground. How can a barrel of oil have a bigger carbon footprint? Let's look at two key points: leakage of methane/natural gas and extracting oil from the oil sands. Many wells designed to extract oil leak methane/natural gas. Methane is a greenhouse gas 40 times stronger than carbon dioxide. Current studies don’t measure methane/natural gas leakage accurately and the federal government has only just begun to tighten standards.
In the cartoon version of the world when an oil well is drilled, oil shoots out of the ground. The reality is that it often “takes energy to make energy.” This is nowhere more apparent than for oil extracted from the oil sands. This process is both more expensive and results in more carbon emissions per barrel of oil. Unfortunately, according to Natural Resources Canada, 97% of Canada’s oil reserves are in oil sands and oil sands extraction is expected to increase from 3.1 million barrels per day in 2022 to 3.7 million barrels per day in 2030.
Canada is the great white north and our communities use diesel generators.
In 2018 Canada’s energy regulator estimated that 200,000 people in Canada, living in remote and rural communities, are dependent on diesel generators. However, in 2018 the total Canadian population was 37 million, making people living off-grid less than 1% of the total. We may think of ourselves as the great white north but vastly more people live in urban areas with public transportation than in remote communities.
It’s not the weather. It’s not the distances. It’s not oil wells per se. It is not diesel generators. Wildfires are a disaster for both the forests and the planet, but not a contributor to Canada’s high per capita carbon footprint. We can do better -- and we should.
Articles and cartoons on Teaspoon Energy by Kristy Dyer are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License You may reprint this as-is for free.
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