Canada to set 80 per cent greenhouse gas reduction target by 2050: Greenpeace

MARRAKECH, Morocco – Greenpeace Canada says Ottawa will set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent below 2005 levels by 2050,

A spokesperson for the environmental organization told The Canadian Press on Wednesday that members of the Canadian delegation at the United Nations climate change conference indicated the 80 per cent number during a meeting.

That would mean Canada would follow the lead of the United States, who have also set an 80 per cent goal.

Members of the Canadian delegation at the United Nations climate change conference in Marrakech, Morocco, did not confirm the information.

Caitlin Workman, a spokeswoman for Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, did not respond to a request for comment.

Canada’s strategy for reaching its target is expected to include doubling production of clean energy and increasing energy produced from biomass.

The plan will also favour integrating electrical transport networks between the provinces as well as U.S. states.

The conference is aimed at implementing the Paris agreement on climate change that entered into effect Nov. 4.

Countries have been meeting to discuss tools for meeting their commitments as well as ways of measuring accountability.

Up until now, the Trudeau government has adopted the previous Conservative government’s 2030 target of reducing emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels.

So far more than 100 countries have ratified the Paris agreement, which aims to limit the average global temperature increase by a maximum of two degrees Celsius by 2050.