Canada emits more greenhouse gases than previously thought

Federal researchers find nearly double amount of methane in western air

OTTAWA— Canada’s methane emissions from the oil-and-gas sector in Alberta and Saskatchewan are almost twice as high as had been previously reported, according to a new study by federal government scientists.

The study, published online Tuesday in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, says the scientists measured methane in the atmosphere at four spots in the western provinces from 2010 to 2017.

Using this data alongside models that determine how the air is moving, they estimate the provinces’ oil-and-gas operations emitted an average of three megatonnes of methane each year. That’s almost double the sector’s annual average of 1.6 megatonnes as reported by the government’s yearly tally of national greenhouse gas emissions, the study says.

Because methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, this difference equates to an extra 35 megatonnes of carbon dioxide pollution each year, the study says, using the same conversion ratio as the government. That’s almost five per cent of the 729 megatonnes of emissions Canada reported this year.

The study was done by scientists in the same department that releases this annual emissions “inventory.”

“It’s not a new source, they just weren’t able to determine what it actually was,” said Doug Worthy, one of the study’s authors and head of the atmospheric observational program at the federal department of Environment and Climate Change Canada.

“It’s not insignificant, that’s for sure,” he said.

The study comes as the Liberal government in Ottawa prepares to lay out how it will fulfil its pledges to aggressively slash greenhouse gas emissions beyond Canada’s current commitment under the international Paris Agreement. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has vowed to exceed that target for 2030 and hit net-zero emissions by 2050, even as government projections from last year show Canada will fall short of its 2030 target by about 77 megatonnes unless it takes additional measures.

The study was also released on the heels of Ottawa’s decision last week not to apply federal methane regulations in Alberta and Saskatchewan, because the government recognized provincial rules as equally stringent.

Dale Marshall, the national climate program manager at Environmental Defence, has criticized the decision and argued the new study shows the government needs to get more aggressive on methane emissions.

His organization, along with the Pembina Institute, calculated in September that current regulations — which were delayed by three years in 2017 — are too weak to achieve Canada’s commitment to slash methane emissions to at least 40 per cent below 2012 levels by 2025.

“The federal government needs to go back to the drawing table and strengthen the regulations,” Marshall said.

“Environment and Climate Change Canada needs to start right now to do the analysis and come up with regulations that are stronger and will get us the emissions reductions that were committed to.”

On Oct. 29, the federal government announced it will offer up to $750 million in interest-free loans to help oil and gas companies cut their methane emissions.

Moira Kelly, a spokesperson for federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, told the Star in an emailed statement Wednesday that Ottawa will “monitor and review the effectiveness” of its methane regulations to ensure its target are met. It will also report publicly on how these regulations are working in late 2021, Kelly said.

“Our government is committed to exceed Canada’s 2030 emissions reduction target, and we recognize that addressing oil and gas sector methane emissions provides some of the most cost-effective approaches to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the country,” she said.

The United Nations’ special panel of climate experts warned in 2018 that the world needs to engage in “unprecedented” change over the next decade to fulfil the goal of the Paris accord and prevent the worst consequences of climate change.