The Canadian Institute for Climate Choices, a national, non-partisan climate policy research organization, presented its most recent report on October 21. The conclusions of the study are unequivocal: the green transition of the Canadian economy cannot wait any longer.
Across the globe, governments and societies are adopting measures that commit the global economy to achieving low carbon and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The transition is accelerating and taking shape, week to week.
This is very good news for our climate. However, the Institute’s report raises some red flags: Market transformation will have a huge impact on the Canadian economy and workforce.
Economies that continue to lag behind and continue to focus on sectors vulnerable to transition risk downturns and job losses.
In Canada, more than 800,000 jobs are attached to sectors vulnerable to transition such as oil and gas, mining, heavy industries and automotive manufacturing. In Quebec, more specifically, 150,000 jobs are at risk.
The context therefore presents threats, but we also find opportunities. The economies of the world that invest in the transition and rapidly develop their sectors of the future will benefit from a very interesting return on investment in the longer term.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
The aluminum sector will experience strong demand for low-carbon products.
Sectors to modernize
Of course, Quebec has made a lot of progress in recent years in terms of climate policy. The province is positioned as a leader in the electrification of transport and in the production of clean energy. These bases will give it in particular the possibility of modernizing certain industrial sectors which, otherwise, would be in danger. This is the case, for example, in sectors such as aluminum or cement, which will experience strong demand for low-carbon products. Our clean energy and our ability to develop new, greener industrial processes can help keep them competitive in the future. In other sectors where demand is expected to decline, such as petroleum refining and the manufacturing of combustion vehicles, transition plans need to be put in place quickly to ensure that workers and affected communities are not left behind. water spout.
It is therefore a major project which has begun, and which will have to accelerate. In this sense, the measures provided for in the Government of Quebec’s 2030 Green Economy Plan must be continued and strengthened.
In his inaugural speech delivered on October 19, Prime Minister François Legault praised Quebec, stressing that “the government has decided to definitively renounce the extraction of hydrocarbons on its territory” and that we must “capitalize on our assets by transforming in depth our economy ”. In light of the report, we can only hope that this commitment by Quebec will materialize.
In order to strengthen the action, the Institute also highlights a few additional courses of action. For example, governments could promote the growth of sustainable finance and improve the convergence of capital towards sectors of the future by tightening the criteria applicable to so-called “green” or ecological investment funds. The different levels of government will also have to work together effectively to put the necessary measures in place.
In short, it is about helping our economy to adapt so that the future is not only cleaner, but also more prosperous. Faced with a transformation of global markets that is now inevitable (and highly desirable), Canada and Quebec can and must seize the opportunities on the table.
Remember that this week, the Premier of Quebec is in Glasgow, Scotland, to participate in COP26. This is the perfect opportunity to get the province on the right track.
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