British Columbia

Targets and Goals

British Columbia has legislated its emissions reduction target of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from 2007 levels by one-third by 2020 and by 80% by 2050.

The BC Climate Action Plan is projected to achieve 73% of the reductions required to achieve the 2020 target. The Climate Action Team (CAT) was established to help the government achieve its ambitious reductions targets by 2020.

BC is also the first in North America to legislate the requirement for the public sector to be carbon neutral by 2010.

Top Actions

Energy Efficiency

• BC has allocated CAD$60 million (US$50 million) over three years for the LiveSmart BC Efficiency Incentive Program that was launched in early 2008. This program provides incentives to reward smart choices that save energy, water, fuel, time and money.
• The BC Energy Plan was announced in 2007, outlining strategies to reduce GHG emissions through increased energy efficiency. A key commitment, as it relates to energy efficiency is an ambitious conservation target to acquire 50% of BC Hydro's incremental resource needs through conservation by 2020.

Renewable Energy

• The BC Energy Plan requires that all new electricity projects have zero net GHG emissions.
• The BC Bioenergy Strategy was launched in January 2008. It is designed to assist the Province in becoming electricity self sufficient by 2016, as committed in the BC Energy Plan. This strategy includes CAD$25 million (US$21 million) for a Bioenergy Network as well as research and development in organic fuel resources such as wood waste cogeneration and biofuel production.
• BC has established the Innovative Clean Energy (ICE) Fund of CAD$25 million (US$21 million) to assist clean power technology projects. The funds will be raised by small charges on energy utilities. Eligible projects could include: development of reliable power solutions for remote or First Nations communities, expansion of opportunities to generate power using alternative fuels, finding ways to convert vehicles to cleaner alternative fuels or advancing conservation technologies to commercial applications.

Clean Transport

• CAD$14 billion (US$12 billion) has been invested in a Provincial Transit Plan to expand services and double transit ridership. The Province also allocated CAD$50 million (US$42 million) in 2007 for the purchase of newer, cleaner transit buses across BC.
• The BC Government has implemented tailpipe emissions standards, equivalent to those laid out in California's 2004 legislation. This standard is for new vehicle fleets and is expected to eliminate nearly a million tonnes of GHG emissions by 2016.
• Substantial tax exemptions have been implemented including: waiving the Provincial Sales Tax on hybrid vehicles saving drivers up to CAD$2000 (US$1700) in addition to the federal government's rebate program. This exemption has been extended to include other environmentally friendly forms of transportation including scooters, electric motorcycles and electric bicycles.

Sustainable Land Use

• The Province has a net zero deforestation policy that will be put into law by 2010. This policy means that when trees from forest land are permanently removed they will have to be offset with new trees planted elsewhere.
• The BC Government has partnered on the Climate Action Initiative project with agricultural sector representatives to explore GHG reduction strategies. Government and industry will work together to improve fertilization application practices, support community biogas digestion/electricity generation projects and explore anaerobic digesters as a method to capture methane from stockpiled manure.
• The Smart Development Partnership Program provides local governments up to CAD$50,000 (US$42,000) to support sustainable land use planning.

Fiscal Measures and Market-Based Mechanisms

• In July 2008, BC became the first jurisdiction in North America to introduce a revenue neutral carbon tax. The tax rate began based on a cost of CAD$10 (US$7.7) per tonne of CO₂e emissions, increasing by CAD$5 (US$3.9) per tonne each year for the next four years to CAD$30 (US$23) per tonne in 2012. All carbon tax revenue will be recycled to British Columbians through tax reductions.
• British Columbia became the first Canadian province to introduce enabling legislation for a cap and trade system when it tabled the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act. As part of the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), British Columbia is committed to participating in the WCI cap and trade program, scheduled to commence in 2012. 

Legislation

• Legislation includes the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act 2007 which legislates BC's reduction targets and carbon neutral public sector target; the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act, the first enabling legislation in Canada for a cap and trade system; the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Renewable and Low Carbon Fuel Requirements) Act with fuel requirements to reduce the environmental impact of transportation fuels; the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Vehicles Emissions Standards) Act which puts into law vehicle GHG emissions standards, equivalent to those in California's 2004 regulation; and the Carbon Tax Act which legislates a comprehensive, revenue-neutral carbon tax.

Contact Information

Climate Action Secretariat

Steve Anderson
Executive Director, Climate Change and Intergovernmental Relations
Steve.Anderson@gov.bc.ca

Graham Whitmarsh
Head, Climate Action Secretariat
Graham.Whitmarsh@gov.bc.ca

Tim Lesiuk
Executive Director, Climate Change Policy
Tim.Lesiuk@gov.bc.ca

Warren Bell
Executive Director, Climate Change Policy
Warren.Bell@gov.bc.ca

Nicola Wade
Executive Director, Carbon Neutral Operations
Nicola.Wade@gov.bc.ca 

Key links

British Columbia Ministry of the Environment - Climate Change

Carbon Neutral Government

Climate Action Plan (2008)

BC Climate Action Team Report (2008)

BC Green Building Code (2008)

BC Energy Plan (2008)

Provincial Transit Plan (2008)

BC Agriculture Plan (2008)

BC Bioenergy Strategy (2008)

Legislation for Reducing Greenhouse Gases