What you need to know about Tuesday’s Quebec Summit on Climate Change

Tuesday, April 14, 2015, 12:23 PM - Quebec City played host to representatives from all provinces and territories of Canada on Tuesday, to address how our Nation plans to tackle one of the most important environmental issues of our time - climate change.

Ahead of the UN Conference on Climate Change in Paris later this year, a March 31, 2015 deadline passed for nations around the world to submit the plans they were going to put on the table come December. However, there was no showing from Canada on this important issue.

Questioned on this in the days leading up to the deadline, the office of federal Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq responded, saying "Canada wants to ensure we have a complete picture of what the provinces and territories plan before we submit. Because this is a national contribution and the provinces have targets of their own, we are collecting information on how they intend to meet their targets."

With the provincial and territorial governments apparently leading the way on this issue, representatives gathered in Quebec City this week, at the invitation of Québec Premier Philippe Couillard, to discuss exactly how each province and territory will be contributing to Canada's overall response. This included both reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation to climate change.

According to the website for the Quebec City Summit on climate change, the goals of this meeting were to:

• Pool the experience and vision of each province and territory regarding the costs and benefits of reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and adapting to the consequences of climate change;
• Foster exchanges on the best possible practices for reducing GHG emissions and the businesses opportunities linked to them;
• Discuss additional possibilities for intergovernmental collaboration to foster a low-carbon economy and at the same time address energy- and climate-related issues;
• Assert the role that Canada’s provinces and territories can play in contributing to the success of the international climate conference, which will take place in Paris in December 2015.

At the end of the meeting, the Premiers and their representatives held a press conference, with positive words about the day's efforts. (English begins at 2m 41s)

However, the positive words were tempered with words of caution about the need for the federal government to be involved.

"It has to be prepared, so we call upon the federal government right now to start working with us, first technically, then with the ministers, in order to work together in establishing our targets for Paris and the way we're going to present our situation, our plans in the future," Premier Couillard said to the press after the meeting. "There's no way it can be done in isolation. One order of government cannot ask the other to do the job. It has to be done together."

Climate Action?

Over the weekend, 25,000 people marched through the city, carrying signs, waving flags and led by a banner that stated "Yes to climate, No to tar sands." Their purpose? To show the representatives gathered that the Canadian people are committed to action on climate change, and thus they should be just as committed to the cause.

Four provinces - British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec - are already partners in the Western Climate Initiative, along with the State of California. Since it was signed, British Columbia has instituted a carbon tax, while Quebec and California joined together in a cap & trade system to limit carbon emissions. Independently, Alberta has its own carbon pricing system, the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation (SGER).

This week, Ontario signed on to join the cap & trade system with Quebec and California, making good on the commitments they made when they joined the WCI in 2008.

"Climate change is a problem that is both critically important and urgent," Premier Wynne said in a press release on Monday. "It is causing extreme weather events, which can increase insurance costs, hurt wildlife, damage our environment and affect farming. Climate change needs to be fought around the globe, and it needs to be fought here in Canada and Ontario. The action we are taking today will help secure a healthier environment, a more competitive economy and a better future for our children and grandchildren."

Although this decision has already drawn criticism, calling the system a 'cash grab' for the province, the press release from Premier Wynne stated that money raised through the system will be transparently reinvested into "projects that reduce greenhouse gas pollution and help businesses remain competitive."

Based on what's been seen in B.C. and Quebec, this cap & trade system is projected to mean an increase in gas prices in Ontario by between 2 and 3.5 cents.

WATCH BELOW: The Weather Network's Mike Arsenault speaks with Earth Day Canada president Deborah Doncaster about this new deal.

Mixed Feelings

Although any action on climate change is certainly a step in the right direction, and better than no action at all, however there are reservations about the plan, and about the meeting.

Is the cap & trade system now between Ontario, Quebec and California better than a straight revenue-neutral carbon tax, such as the one in B.C., and will it actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Ontario?

Also, even if the provinces have made progress today, will this lead to strong commitments from Canada going into Paris in December?

Based on this meeting, representatives of Canada's provinces and territories are positive about their contributions, however confidence levels with the federal government aren't so high.

"We're still waiting for a partnership with Ottawa," said David Heurtel, Quebec's Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and the Fight against Climate Change, according to CBC News. "We've sent many different types of messages to Ottawa to sit down and work on this issue. We're still waiting for a response."

Sources: Globe and Mail | Quebec City Summit on climate change | CBC | Western Climate Initiative | Office of the Premier | Pembina Institute