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New Brunswick announces plan to phase out coal generation

7th December 2016

By: Henry Lazenby

Creamer Media Deputy Editor: North America

  

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VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Canada’s maritime province New Brunswick is following in the footsteps of the federal government and other provinces such as Alberta and Ontario to phase out or announce plans to completely phase out coal-fired electricity generation by 2030.

In its new action plan ‘Transitioning to a Low-carbon Economy’, New Brunswick has committed to work with the federal government, neighbouring provinces, local stakeholders and the electric utility toward eliminating coal-fuelled electricity generation as quickly as possible.

“Climate change is the most important issue to face humankind in modern times. New Brunswick must do its part to combat it. This plan will help us combat climate change in a way that respects New Brunswick’s economy, challenges and opportunities,” said Premier Brian Gallant.

Government stated its goal Wednesday to phase out coal as a source of electricity as quickly as possible, while still having regard for the province’s economic reality.

Gallant stated that if government can find enough support to reduce impacts on energy costs and the local economy, it will aim at eliminating coal by 2030, however, if not, then it will phase out coal by the status quo date of 2040, with interim emission reductions aligned with new federal regulations.

New Brunswick’s plan echoes that of Alberta, which in November announced that as part of its ‘Climate Leadership Plan’, the Alberta government had agreed to pay three coal power producers operating in the province more than C$1-billion over the next 14 years to compensate them for prematurely shuttering their coal-fired power plants by 2030.

These agreements came on the back of the Canadian federal government's accelerated plans, also announced in November, to transition the economy to renewable-energy sources, saying it would aim to phase out coal-fired plants by 2030.

“The Government of Canada looks forward to working with New Brunswick on climate action and supporting clean-growth projects to achieve the goals of their climate-change plan, such as accelerating the phase out of coal power,” federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna said in a statement.

ACTION PLAN
Lawmakers stressed that the action plan was designed to simultaneously reduce greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions and maintaining economic growth.

Electricity generation accounts for 31% of the province’s emissions, followed by industry at 29% and transportation at 25%.

Government highlighted, among the more than 100 action items outlined in the plan: expanding energy efficiency and clean energy programmes across all sectors and all fuels with ambitious performance targets; phasing out coal as a source of electricity, respecting New Brunswick’s economic reality and considering potential financial support from the federal government; planning for and investing in new technologies that reduce pollution, such as smart grid and renewable electricity; establishing a made-in-New Brunswick price on carbon and caps on GHG emissions that reflect the reality of the New Brunswick economy; leading by example by making government carbon-neutral by 2030 and increasing spending on energy efficiency in the next capital budget by 50%; and measuring and reporting progress with strong oversight by committees of Cabinet and the legislative assembly.

The premier will present the plan to federal, provincial and territorial counterparts during the first ministers’ meeting on December 9 in Ottawa, where they will work to finalise the Pan-Canadian Framework on Climate Change.

“The effects of climate change in our country and our province are already evident. It has become increasingly clear that the cost of inaction is greater than the cost of action, particularly early action,” said Environment and Local Government Minister Serge Rousselle.

“New Brunswick must, and will, rise to the challenge. This plan represents a large step forward in our efforts to combat the growing threat of climate change. It is ambitious but necessary, and the time for action is now.”

PIPELINE SUPPORT
Premier Gallant’s GHG-reduction plan follows a day after he moved that the provincial legislative assembly recommit its backing of TransCanada’s Energy East pipeline project and the economic opportunities it could bring to New Brunswick.

He argued that the C$15.7-billion pipeline “would create thousands of jobs and boost the New Brunswick economy by hundreds of millions of dollars”.

This amounts to an expected estimated 4 551 direct and indirect jobs during construction of the pipeline, with 321 jobs every year of operation. The potential increase to New Brunswick’s gross domestic product is more than C$3-billion.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

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