When the government’s actions speak louder than words, how do we tackle climate dissonance?

The feds' approval of a new off-shore drilling project and the recent budget have Canadians asking where the government actually stands on climate change

Caroline Merner is a graduate student at the Max Bell School of Public Policy as well as Vice President, Finance, of the Public Policy Association of Graduate Students (PPAGS). Caroline co-founded Youth4Nature (formerly Climate Guides), a non-profit organization that mobilizes youth on nature and climate action. The organization has hosted two youth mentorship programs, a storytelling platform, and boasts a network of over 5,000 youth.

Write us at newsletterthebell@gmail.com.

Protests sprung up in response to the federal government’s announcement of a new fossil fuel drilling project off the coast of Newfoundland & Labrador. (Source: Grace Ma)

THE NEW FEDERAL BUDGET dedicates $2.6 billion to carbon capture and storage tax credits, which essentially constitute a handout to the fossil fuel industry. These credits undermine Canada’s commitment to phase out “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies and will reduce the relative value of investments in more effective climate action, like energy efficiency measures and electrification.

This announcement came on the heels of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report stating that existing and currently-planned fossil fuel projects are already more than the climate can handle. The UN Secretary-General António Guterres confirmed, "[i]nvesting in new fossil fuels is moral and economic madness."

Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault described this new climate report as “sobering” and called for urgent action: "We don't have the luxury of taking four, five or six years to develop new regulations to tackle climate change," he said. Yet, the very next day the government approved the Bay Du Nord offshore oil project in Newfoundland. The deep oil drilling project would begin production in 2028 and produce 300 million barrels of oil over its lifetime.

Despite its talk about the magnitude of the climate crisis, the Government of Canada repeats its duplicity time and again. While there have been important steps forward on climate policy in recent years, expanding fossil fuel infrastructure undermines this progress, and the the dissonance elicited by Canadian politicians on the topic is part of a broader trend.

In 2019, Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna put forward a motion in the House of Commons declaring a "national climate emergency." The very next day Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's cabinet approved the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. The government justified the $4.5 billion subsidy to the Alberta fossil fuel industry as a way to maximize revenue and allegedly fund climate action projects. Since then, the cost to taxpayers of subsidizing the pipeline has soared from $5.4 billion to $21.4 billion. This represents a fundamental contradiction of the 2015 Liberal Party campaign promise to entirely phase out fossil fuel subsidies.

How do we combat this climate dissonance?

First, we take a moment to grieve. Indigenous land defenders, climate activists, youth, advocates, scientists, and others have been tirelessly sounding the alarm about the climate emergency, yet many are exhausted by the climate dissonance. Catherine Abreu, Founder and Executive Director of Destination Zero, describes well the importance of sharing the heartache in the climate community.

Second, we demand accountability and alternatives. We need to identify and hold politicians accountable for these contradictions. Since climate policy requires trade-offs, we need fora for dialogue to outline the alternatives. This could be hosted under the Just Transition Act, which was also promised by the government. On March 12th, 50 communities across the country outlined their vision for a just transition. We must recognize the challenge that phasing out fossil fuels presents for workers, identify ways to put workers first, create green jobs, and leave no one behind.

Third, we continue to mobilize. The latest IPCC report describes the ways Indigenous Peoples, civil society and youth have influenced political support for climate policy and motivated policy outcomes. Progress on climate policy depends on greater demand for climate ambition. When we elect climate leaders, we need to continue to advocate for the political courage necessary to act on the climate crisis.

The Government of Canada congratulates itself for climate leadership while at the same time investing in brand-new fossil fuel projects. As the UN Secretary-General said this week, “[c]limate activists are sometimes depicted as dangerous radicals. But the truly dangerous radicals are the countries that are increasing the production of fossil fuels.”

To move beyond climate dissonance, we must hold to account the government that talks about urgent climate action one day, then does the opposite the next.

* This piece draws inspiration from the following tweets by @ProfKHarrison, @carobrouillette, and @catabreu_.

___

The Bell is edited by Jaclyn Victor, Jason Kreutz, Shweta Menon and Phaedra de Saint-Rome of the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University.