iPolitics By iPolitics. Published on May 3, 2021 12:16pm
The Lead
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Monday a new proposal to slash “the production and importation of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)” by 85 per cent over the next 15 years, according to the New York Times. HFCs are a category of harmful greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning.
Between 2022 and 2050, the EPA projects that their regulation will eliminate 4.7 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to about three years of emissions from the American power sector.
Scientists say reducing the use of HFCs will slow the pace of the planet’s warming by 0.6 C by 2050.
Net Zero: U S to cut down use of harmful greenhouse gases by 2036
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Ontario’s proposed new mega-project to build a highway looping around the northwest of Toronto has been designated by the federal government for special environmental scrutiny.
The federal government says the provincial project, already facing opposition, needs additional environmental oversight, a designation that will slow the massive construction project or, opponents say, kill it altogether.
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“Canadians expect their governments to make decisions based on science and evidence that support environmental protection and economic growth,” said Jonathan Wilkinson, federal minister of Environment and Climate Change.
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OTTAWA The Prairies and Ontario say they weren’t consulted about Canada’s higher target to cut greenhouse gas pollution, while other provinces welcome the federal government’s new goal for 2030.
The division is a sign policies around tacking climate change remain a source of friction in some federal-provincial relations as Ottawa pushes the country toward net zero by 2050, but rejects there has been any lack of communication.
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged at a recent global leaders summit to reduce emissions of these heat-trapping gases by 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by the end of the decade.
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Vaccine failure
It is undeniable that the Canadian government and the provinces could have done a much better job of vaccine distribution. It is unfortunate that vaccine manufacturing plants were closed in the 1980s. We should have learned a lesson or two from the SARS outbreak. Messaging from the government could have been much clearer. The misinformation and conspiracy theories being widely shared on the Internet are not helpful. There were suggestions that the virus was a hoax. There were claims that masks were not effective. We protested against every health measure. We rebelled against advice to not have family gatherings during the holidays. Services continued at some churches in defiance of public health orders. Finally, a tsunami of misinformation about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines have caused some to not want to be vaccinated. Given all of that, it should come as no surprise that we are still struggling with this health crisis.
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