Estimated reading time 11 minutes, 53 seconds.
Aviation is vital to Canada’s economy, to creating good jobs and to connecting Canadians. The Government of Canada, in partnership with the aviation industry, is committed to taking concrete action to meet its climate goals and ensure that Canadians have an efficient and environmentally friendly transportation system.
Today, Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced the release of Canada’s Aviation Climate Action Plan (2022-2030). The action plan:
- presents a vision of net zero emissions by 2050 for the Canadian aviation sector,
- sets a purposefully ambitious goal of 10% for the use of sustainable aviation fuel by 2030 to send a clear signal that Canada and the aviation sector recognize the need for significant volumes of sustainable aviation fuel to achieve its vision of net-zero by 2050, and
- includes key pathways and actions that the Government of Canada and the aviation industry intend to work on to improve efficiency and reduce pollution from aviation activities through this plan.
For more than a decade, the Government of Canada and the aviation industry have worked together to reduce emissions that contribute to climate change. Transport Canada has renewed this action plan in collaboration with federal partners and the aviation industry.
This new action plan is an important first step towards that net zero vision, paving the way for the Government of Canada and the aviation industry to advance a variety of measures to ensure the aviation is able to continue to provide Canadians with a level of service while steering the sector towards a sustainable future.
This plan will also serve as the foundation upon which the Government of Canada will further engage stakeholders, key experts and the public on the most effective and equitable path to achieving this vision. Canada’s Action Plan for Aviation will undergo a series of updates, the first in 2024, which will include reassessing long-term projections, strengthening short-term commitments, setting interim targets, and ensuring continued alignment with Canada’s climate commitments.
Quotes
“Transportation, economy and climate should go hand-in-hand. Canada’s Aviation Climate Action Plan is a good example of how we can come together to set a net-zero emission vision and lay out the actions needed to get us on the right path. Our government will engage with key stakeholders and the public to implement the activities in the Action Plan and explore additional measures to reduce pollution.”
The Honourable Omar Alghabra
Minister of Transport
Quick Facts
- Transport Canada renewed this action plan in collaboration with the following federal partners: Environment and Climate Change Canada; Innovation, Science and Economic Development; the National Research Council; Natural Resources Canada; Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat; and with the aviation industry: Aerospace Industries Association of Canada; Air Transport Association of Canada; Canadian Airports Council; Canadian Business Aviation Association; National Airlines Council of Canada; and NAV CANADA.
- At COP 26, Canada signed onto the International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition. The declaration includes a commitment to prepare an action plan detailing concrete efforts to reduce aviation emissions, and to submit the plan to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in advance of the 41st International Civil Aviation Organization Assembly.
- In 2012, the Government of Canada and the aviation industry released Canada’s first Action Plan to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Aviation. This voluntary initiative brought together the collective efforts of Transport Canada, Canadian airlines, airports, air navigation service providers, and aircraft and aircraft engine manufacturers to reduce the carbon intensity of this sector.
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Canada’s new aviation climate plan prioritizes the growth of the aviation sector over climate action.
Denmark, Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands have all committed to significantly reduce aviation emissions this decade, in line with the UN’s call to cut global emissions in half by 2030 in order to avoid catastrophic planetary heating.
In contrast, Canada is allowing air travel to continue to grow by 2.5% a year, and therefore, its new plan won’t start to achieve reductions in total aviation emission until well into the 2030s.
Perhaps the prioritization of aviation industry growth and profit over climate action in Canada’s plan isn’t surprising: after all, the plan was co-written by industry representatives without input from non-industry stakeholders or the public.